What the Heart Wants
by silk1
Summary: Chapter 14 is up! After defeating the first (without destroying Sunnydale and Killing Spike) Buffy encounters another Primeval Force come to Sunnydale to request the Slayers help. Finally Updated!
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer: I don´t own Buffy or any other character except Selena and her folks.

Buffy belongs to Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy!

Notes: Ok ….sooooo--- this is after Season 7 BUT :

Spike did so not die! #

Sunnydale was not destroyed

There are no mini-slayers!

They just defeated the first and now things have cooled down …..

I was inspired to write this story by my holiday in Finnland

This is only a beginning so please have patience and bear with me …. This will go somewhere if you guys like the idea……

THE SOUND OF HER VOICE 

_If you could only read my mind _

_You would know that things between us ain´t right_

_I know your arms are open wide, _

_But you´re a little on the straight side_

_I can´t lie _

Something was wrong. Spike felt it the moment he turned around the corner in front of the BRONZE. There was something indistinct, something eerie in the air that night, something that made the little hairs on the back of his neck stand up. Unable to put his finger on the feeling, he listened to the lyrics of the OFFSPRING -Song that emanated from the club. It was sung by a woman. He knew there was a hot new cover-band playing tonight. That was why he was there, hoping that Buffy and her friends would be there too……hoping to see Buffy. 

_Your one vice is that you´re too nice_

_Come around now can´t you see_

There was something about that woman´s voice , something fairly familiar …something that gave him goosepimples. But Spike had no time to ponder that thought.

The BRONZE was crowded. Spike made his way to the bar, all the while scanning his surroundings for the slayer and her friends. 

Ahh, there she was , sitting at a table next to Willow. In one of those skimpy skirts, high heeled boots outfits he loved so much  …. 

She looked bloody fantastic!

_I want you , all tatooed , I want you bad_

_Complete me  , mistreat me _

_want you to be bad, _

_If you could only read my mind , _

_You would know that I´ve been waiting so long_

_For someone almost just like you,_

_But with attitude , I´m waiting_

_ so come on_

_Get out of clothestime, grow out those highlights_

_Come around now , can´t you see_

_I want you , in a vinyl suit _

_I want you bad_

_Complicated, X-rated_

I want you bad 

Spike´s eyes followed Buffy´s gaze to the singing woman on the stage. Quite a stunning sight, he had to admit. Low cut leather trousers hugging slim hips, showing off an impossible tiny waist and a pierced bellybutton. The tight, black tank top revealed more perfect skin and cleavage than it covered. She was definetly a sight for sore eyes. In the dim lighting of the club, her pale skin shimmered like mother of pearl, her platinum blond her fell down her shoulders to the small of her back. 

_Don´t get me wrong _

_I know you´re only being good_

_But that´s what´s wrong_

_I guess I just misunderstood_

_I want you _

_All tattoed _

_I want you bad_

_Complicated _

_X-rated_

_I want you bad _

Still, there was something about the sound of her voice that reminded him of ….

Spike´s eyes wandered up to the girl´s face, their eyes met ….she had dark eyes, a beautiful face like a china doll….a perfect face and  obsidian black eyes.  That´s when it hit him. He felt as if someone had just knocked the air out of his lungs. 

Oh, bloody hell… of course he knew the sound of her voice … knew that body , that perfectly innocent face …..too bloody perfect by far ……SIOBHAN. 

_I mean it. I need it ._

_I want you bad! _

The song ended, applause roared through the club. 

" Thanks." , the blonde girl spoke into the mic, her voice was husky and seductive.

 " Me and the boys will take a break, but we´ll be back soon." 

Than she jumped of the stage, moving towards the ladies room. Spike followed her, unsure if Siobhan had seen him or not. 

" Hey , There is Spike.!" Dawn called out –  trying to catch the blond vampire´s eye in order to wave him over to their table. But he just walked by , not even glancing towards them. Buffy felt her  heart skip a beat. She frowned, angry with herself. 

After everything that happened, after the dramatic events that lead to defeating the first …..

She had still no clue where she stood emotionally when it came to the peroxide vamp.

" Wow someone has his panties in a twist." Dawn said a little hurt. 

" Yeah, what´s his problem?" Willow asked Buffy, who just shrugged.

 Something tightened in her chest. 

Spike waited for Siobhan in front of the ladies room. As soon as she came out , he grabbed her arms, pushing her against the wall. 

" What the bloody hell are you doing here?" he hissed furiously. She was even more petite and fragile looking than he remembered…

" Surprised to see  me William?"

 With far more power than one could expect from a person as dainty as she was, the girl shoved him off of herself.

 " Thought you´d never see me again after leaving me for dead in Dublin, ha? "

" We did not leave you for dead…you were still alive! " Spike answered indignantly. 

" Right, that´s why you left me for the angry mob, while you and Angelus escaped! That is no way to treat a lady !" She pouted. 

" You are no lady! " the vampire countered. 

" I warn you, I will not ask again! What in the name of hell are you doing here?"

" I´am in a band …I sing!"   
" Stating the obvious!" Spike snarled

 " Could not find a better place for your change of career?" 

" Ohhhh, Spiky!" she purred in a low key of voice

 " Actually I heard some stories about you and I was incredibly curious to see if they are true." 

" Curiousity killed the cat. Who told you ?" 

Soibhan smiled up at him.

 " Guess whom I met when we were playing in this snuggly little club in San Francisco.. Your old ball and chain! I must say Drusilla did look even more out of her mind than when we last met!"  

" You met Dru?" 

" She was spitting venom when I asked her about you …I didn´t know you  had broken up.." 

" She left me!" Spike pointed out . 

" For A chaos demon ..yadayada….heard all about it , but you know what the most interesting thing she told me was? " 

Spike just glared at her. In a way Buffy had always reminded him of Siobhan and now he remembered why….how could such a tiny slip of a girl be so much trouble? 

" She told me you were in love with the Slayer !!"

 She giggled, it sounded like a child´s laughter, but then Siobhan and her kind had always been extremely good at betraying their true nature. 

" So when we got the offer to play in Sunnydale I decided it was the perfect opportunity to check out the truth behind that nasty little rumor. And that other thing I´ve been hearing …the soul? But it´s true! I can smell it on you, feel it burning inside of you." 

" Can you believe it? The fact that all kinds of  hotties favor Spike will never cease to amaze me!" Xander said, watching Spike talk to the blonde singer from across the room. 

"Ha?" Buffy turned around  to look at the scene Xander was referring to. 

" Ouch! What was that for?" 

Dawn just glared at him, but Willow hit him under the table. 

Spike turned his head almost instantly, as if he had been able to feel the Scoobies ´eyes piercing  his back.

" I think we´d better take this conversation outside!" he said angrily, grabbing the blond girl´s elbow and shoving her toward´s the Bronze´s back entrance. 

" I think I´ll better check this out, who knows what he might be up to", cursing herself for the feeble excuse to follow Spike Buffy headed off in his direction. Dawn flashed her an understanding smile, while Xander rolled his eyes, earning  kicks to his chins from both sides of the table. 

" OUCH!" 

" Why did you have to come here , dammit! " 

" Oh William, will you just let it go?" Siobhan freed herself from his grip.

 " So it is true…..you fell for the slayer ." She squinted, looking up at him 

" You really love her!" 

She said surprised. 

" Argh…! Will you let it go woman!? My personal feelings are no concern of yours! Why don´t we talk about your little change of career a bit , ha?" 

" O worried I´ll have a little chat with her about your infamous past?"  Spike grabbed her by the shoulders , glaring down at her small frame . 

" I will only tell you once Siobhan…you do not touch her , you don´t …" 

" Spike , what are you doing?" 

Buffy´s voice pierced the cool nightair like a shot. She did not like what she saw, he was obviously threatening the girl. Buffy pushed him against the wall, furious. 

After all they had been through …..what kind of stunt was he trying to pull? 

 He held up his palms, shaking his head simultaniously. 

" Buffy,bloody hell, this is not what it looks like. I was trying to  protect you."

" Oh right." She returned ironically, 

" Are you all right?" 

The blond girl smiled at her .

" I´am ok, thank you." 

" Buffy …." 

" Cut the crap Spike I saw you!" 

" You don´t know what you see!" Spike spit out angrily. 

" What was it  that I saw Spike? What were you trying to do to her ?" 

" Will you think for a bloody minute …soul remember?" 

" Can I go now?" Siobhan asked in her best little girl voice. 

" No , you bloody well can´t!" He said grabbing her arm. 

"Spike , will you let her go?" 

Buffy got a hold of his duster, but he wouldn´t back down.

" Show her!" he yelled at Siobhan. 

" Show her now, or I swear I will …" 

" Alright, alright …" 

Buffy stared at the petite blonde, she was even more petite than  Buffy herself. 

" What the hell is going on here?" she demanded to know.

" Fine." The girl sighed exasperated.

" Fine, but let go of me!" 

Spike reluctantly let go of her arm. 

" What is this all about ?" Buffy did not like the unsettling feeling that grew in this pit of her stomach. 

Spike´s eyes didn´t leave the girl for a second.

 " You will see, love, she is not what she seems." 

" Spoilsport!" Siobhan hissed and stepped back into the darkness of the alley , pouting. 

Buffy stared at the place where the girl had just stood, out of the shadow and darkness , two gleaming eyes stared back at her. 

" What the hell…" 

When Siobhan stepped back into the light her whole appearance had changed. She was still a small, curvy woman, but her skin had the colour of ash. I almost looked as if someone had painted her whole body with ashes, her hair was silvery white and her nails black. Her face had the same angelic features and yet it made Buffy shiver….Buffy noted that her eyes were pure,obsidian black. They were neither giving or receiving light, and as much as she tried to she could not discern pupils in them. 

" Buffy, the Vampire Slayer, meet Siobhan, The Banshee." 

" Banshee?" 

The creature gave a chuckle.

 " You did not really think that a human could posess such a voice as mine, did you?" 

 " Is she evil?" Buffy asked Spike , raising an eyebrow. 

" Yes" he answered

" No!" Siobhan exclaimed .

" See I used to be a Banshee…well, in fact of course I still am …but I don´t harm people anymore. I´am in a band now !"

 She smiled at Buffy, as if they were girlfriends ..or something  Buffy added in her mind. That sure was creepy. 

" How come?" Buffy asked, crossing her arms in front of her body . 

" Well you see, my line of work is very demanding. In a way Banshees are like mermaids ..without the water . We wait for lonely travelers on deserted roads.. and sometimes that takes forever! Well, times change …nowadays everyone travels in cars and frankly, most of those backpackers we get are not as gullible as they used to be. And then of course our favorites , the brokenhearted, almost every sinister force seems to be tapping into that field now, too much competition …..it is just not fun anymore. So since we have this incredible voice I thought it is just too good to be wasted on screeching and screaming, after watching all these Horror-movies most people don´t scare as easy . So I became a singer …a  girl just wants to have fun, right?"

"Ok." Buffy said, turning around. 

" What?" Spike sputtered 

"That´s it ?…You are the Slayer, you…should do something." 

" Spike " Siobhan purred , she had changed back into her human form.

 " Why don´t you go and get us two girls some drinks, so we can talk like …you know ..girls." 

" I don´t believe you women!" he said , obviously very annoyed. 

Buffy turned around to look at Siobhan. 

" I did not slay you. What else is there to talk about?" She asked icily. 

Siobhan lifted one of her perfectly sculptered eyebrows, smiling.

" Let´s say I did not only come here to sing." She answered .

 " Why did you not slay me?" 

" You said you don´t kill anymore ." 

" I could have lied…." 

" If you did, I will kill you.!"

" If you don´t love him let him go."

" Excuse me?" 

" Spike…."

" I know who you were referring to, but that is none of your business." 

" Isn´t it ?….He is a friend" 

" You don´t seem to be an friendly terms.!"

" We were ..once." 

" When you were both killers!" Buffy said angrily, not knowing were exactly her anger came from.

" Yes" Siobhan admitted softly 

" He even tried to  sacrifice me, so that he and others could live….but I forgive him, because I loved him once…like a brother. 

" You and him ….you are the same. How could you? What can a creature like you possibly know about love?" 

Buffy raged, she felt tears forming in her eyes, tears of anger and sadness. 

Siobhan looked at her.

 " Love is what put me in this place." She said evenly 

" Love is what made me what I´am today. Do you really believe I was born like this? "

 She shook her head laughing bitterly.

" Like William I was once human, maybe not like you …like your friends." 

Surprised Buffy looked into the other woman´s dark eyes.

" What happened?" 

" I fell in love. I was born into a noble family, in the year 1312 of our Lord.

I grew up to be the most admired and courted girl at the king´s court. But there was only one man I loved…..Edward, the king´s son. Edward , the hero…..the Black Prince of Wales. He was a warrior, there was no man he could not defeat , no city he could not conquer, as easily as he conquered my heart. He was a true champion..I would have died for him."

Buffy was captured, she could still see the sparkle in Siobhan´s eyes when she talked about that man….

" Why.."

" He loved another ….Joan of Kent , he could have had every princess in Europe, he could have had every girl in England ….he could have had me, but he married her for love. I thought I would die, I think a part of me did ….I was so angry , so hurt…so I cursed him. Edward never became King of England, he fell sick …he died …I destroyed him. That´s what turned me into a Banshee. Dark Magic has it´s price…" 

Buffy nodded, still numbed from the fact that this strange creature bared her soul in front of her. 

" Why did you tell me this?" 

" So you can heed the advice someone gave you a while back, …before you died I presume, how come you took one part of that advice and discarded the other ." 

" What?" Buffy stepped back. " Can you read my mind?" 

" A little…" Siobhan admitted

" I don´t know what you mean! "

" The first slayer I believe ….you have to let go of all these bad feelings about William´s past. It is not who he is today. Love.Give:Forgive!"

Just as Buffy  was about to ask her what she ment, the door oepened and Spike returned with two shots of Tequila. 

" There you go, lasses." 

Siobhan grabbed the glass downed the liquor  and wiped a single tear from her cheek. 

" Gotta go, sets starting, come in and listen." Was all she said when she pushed past them, heading back into the club."

Spike´s gaze followed her back into the club, before his eyes returned to Buffy.

" What did you talk about?"

 There was a tiny tremor in his voice, he was still unsure about Siobhan ….she could have told Buffy a lot of things that would make her despise him even more. 

 Buffy looked up at him, taking him in inch for inch. What did she feel for him? Was it just her pride that held her back, or was it something else…fear, shame ?

 True, he had been a killer, but he had fought with her, kept her sister safe while she was gone. He would have died in order to safe her and the ones she loved. Angel had been evil once and he had changed , Buffy reminded herself for the millionst time. Anya had been a demon, she had killed, mamed, totured in the name of vengeance for longer than Angel and Spike together…and yet she became Buffy´s friend….

" Buffy?" Spike´s voice brought her back to reality. 

" What …talk ..a nothing special …girl talk…." 

Spike´s eyes searched her face. 

" See…I have known that wench quite a long while and if there is something Siobhan is really bad with is small talk." He said simply. 

They both turned their heads towards the stage, Siobhan had started singing again. Buffy looked around the club, realising for the first time what she had ment. No human could have a voice like hers, clear and throaty, soft and raw, …. There was something in her voice that captivated her listeners …every eye in the Bronze was fixed on her small frame swaying back and forth on the stage. 

" There is so much …pain." She muttered unconciously. 

" Loneliness." Spike said.

" That´s the bloody secret! A banshee´s voice is supposed to lure you in, it speaks to something hidden inside you, something you lack … you´d better hope and pray you never hear her scream. Draws your soul right out of your body! " 

" Why did you think I needed protecting?" she asked suddenly

." What did you think why she was here?" 

Spike thought about it for a moment…unsure if he should lie or tell the truth. 

" Bloody revenge is what I thought! Me and the poof fed her to an angry mob in Ireland, so that we could escape. Guess she did not take that well, I´d be pissed of as hell! Took her almost one hundred years to find me…" 

She shook her head. After everything that had happened…….she sometimes forgot about his past.

" Why does the fact that you would screw over a friend to save your own skin suddenly surprise me ?" Buffy asked icily. 

Great , Spike thought ….that´s what you get from telling the truth! And did she even register the fact that Angel was part of that too?

Before Spike could think of a sassy return something else caught his attention. 

There was a rush of air, cool and smooth, almost a caress. It blew over them and through the club. Buffy shivered, looking around with narrowed eyes. She could have bet that just a second ago she had heard a wolf howl.

" Is the moon full tonight?" she asked abruptely, looking up to see Spike mirrowing his behaviour.

" No…" he whispered back, feeling even tenser than just a few minutes ago.

" Do you smell that?"

The air smelt cool and crisp.

" It smells like snow."

" Oh bloody hell..I should have known!" he suddenly cursed under his breath.

How could he have been so ignorant…… the signs had all been there!

" She lied to us!" 

Buffy frowned, unsure if she was following Spike´s line of thinking.

" I don´t understand……you mean the Banshee?"

" Yes …..she did not leave San Francisco because they could get a gig here. She left because the air was getting too bloody thick  there."

" Spike …what are you talking about?" Buffy asked impatiently.

Spike closed his eyes for a moment trying to gather his thoughts. How was he supposed to explain this to her ….she wouldn´t like it, of that he was sure! He wasn´t even quite sure if he could explain if he wanted to…..

" I did not lie …." 

Buffy gave a surprised gasp and jumped to the side as the tiny frame of the banshee suddenly materialized next to her. Not even with her Slayer-senses had she heard Siobhan coming. It was as though she had just stepped right out of the shadows. The Guitarplayer had taken over now, singing in a raw, deep voice.

Buffy could feel a strange prickly sensation on the skin of her neck.

" Something is wrong here!" she breathed uncomfortably.

" You wanna tell us what´s going on?"Spike snarled at Siobhan.

The banshee sighed, rolling her eyes.

" Fine …but shouldn´t you know by now?"

Buffy crossed her arms in front of her chest. Suddenly she was feeling really impatient.

" I´ve had enough of these secret hints …..enlighten us!"

" William is right, I did not just come here for the gig. It´s a lucky coincidence that the offer came in just when I really wanted to get out of San Francisco."

" Why?" Spike´s voice was barely controlled. Buffy could hear the faint tremor in his tone and gave him an odd look.

Siobhan stifled a bitter laugh.

" Oh William …..did they take all half your brain and all your senses in exchange for the soul? Surely you can feel the power, it´s drifting through this club like mist rising from the dephts! It makes my skin crawl!"

Buffy looked around. She could see Willow looking around with a frown on her face. Something was bothering the Wicca and now that the banshee mentioned it…..Buffy could feel it too.

" What is it?" she demanded to know, all the while checking for quick escape routes just in case she needed to get the people out of the Bronze.

" The same thing that hit San Francisco a few days back…..pretty much every preternatural creature in the Bay area crawled out of it´s hiding place and tried to scramble away as fast as possible!"

" Quit the mystery talk ..now. You know what´s causing this?"

Siobhan pursed her lips, her eyes trained on Spike.

" Sure …..every beastie in Sunnydale should know by now! They have a way of making their presence known! You  feel the pull the pull too, it´s like the tide. It´s just some really old, forgotten friends coming to call…….from the old world."

" Old friends?"

" Very old, as in ancient aristocracy…"

She lifted an eyebrow, her eyes flickered dark. It seemed almost like a challenge.

" …..and let me tell you, her ladyship is not in the best of moods! At least she´s not traveling with her usual attire and entourage."

" Bloody hell …I knew it!" Spike spit back at her, grabbing her hand violently.

" And you lead her here? Why? So you´re at their back and call now?"

" Oh like I had a choice!" Siobhan scoffed, pushing the vampire off her.

" You know …you´ve met the old ones, it´s not like I could refuse and leave!

They call for you and you obey…….that´s how things are. I couldn´t even get away if I wanted too!"

" What does she want?"

Siobhan´s eyes wandered from Spike to Buffy.

" She´s here for the slayer."

" I should have wrung your neck on sight Siobhan …you …."

" She doesn´t want to hurt her, she  has a request! No harm will come to her."

" Hey!" Buffy stepped in between them, pushing them apart.

" What the hell is going on? Spike, what is she talking about?

Who came here …vampires, old ones?"

Spike just shook his head. For a moment it seemed as though he was trying to say something but was choking on his own words.

Buffy decided that she had really had enough. Her evening was spoiled and the prospect of fighting an old vampire, maybe older than the master so soon after the struggle with the first made her feel incredibly tired. 

" You said old world ..so you mean from Europe? Vampires from Europe coming to look for me….."

The banshee laughed. It was a pretty sound, like tinkling bells.

" No vampires…."

Suddenly both Siobhan and Spike jerked their heads to the side as though they were listening for something.

Spike´s gaze returned to Buffy.

" It´s too late now ….she´s here. So let´s go and meet her, love!"

He grabbed Buffys hand, carefully squeezing it.

" Go where?"

" Outside….trust me."

With Siobhan leading the way, Spike pulled Buffy through the backdoor into the alley behind the Bronze.

" Will somebody tell me what is going on here…."

Buffy stopped dead in her tracks as a silver- fured wolf trotted by her, his eyes glowing in 

the darkness of the alley.

" What the …."

Her eyes followed the wolf and widened as the grey animal moved  towards a cloaked figure waiting a few yards away.

The obvious female stranger was not much taller than the slayer herself, but she radiated power unlike any Buffy had ever felt. 

The woman wore a light hooded cloak with a big hood that hid her face completely, beige suede-leatherpants that fit her slender legs like a second skin and knee-high boots of the same colour and material.

The wolf sat down next to  her, looking up and waiting to be petted. She slowly lowered a hand, the wolf nuzzled it´s snout into it with a mewl.

Buffy could hear Spike and the banshee elicit a shallow sigh.

Siobhan bowed her head gracefully.

" I love my lady …she is very fair!" 

Buffy furrowed her brow. The words were from a poem she had once read in highshool.

It was almost as if she could hear faint whispers in the wind.

With a incredibly fluid motion the figure pulled the hood of her cloak back to reveal a face that was almost too beautiful to be true.

Her skin shone in the blackness of the shadows, clear and white like fresh fallen snow. It looked like it was carved from marvel, with high- cheekbones and full lips. Her hair was coloured in a way that was completely unnatural,  seemingly uniting all the colours of fall leaves. There were strands of dark and light brown in many different shades, but also copper, fiery red, bronze and auburn.  

Whever that woman was Buffy instantly knew that she had never encountered a creature quite like this before.

From the look of her she wasn´t even a woman, more like a girl on the brink of becoming one. In the dark alley she seemed completely displaced, like somebody had just forgotten her there and now she was lost. The perfect  childbride …..and yet she radiated power, making the air seem thick around her. She was beyond beautiful, just standing there like a statue in front of the dark, star filled sky, while the wind played with her long hair.

Buffy swallowed hard, forcing herself to hold her ground.

There was something in all that beauty, something scary and unreal …something unnatural.

She could feel her power breathe over them like wind. The young woman smiled at her and that smile made Buffy tell her all her deepest secrets and desires. It was a smile that emanated trust and acceptance …..love. 

The whole picture, her appearance, the way her pale skin seemed to shimmer in the dark like mother of pearl…….it was mesmerizing. 

Her eyes had the colour of the sky just before a storm.

" Thus Aragorn for the first time beheld Eowyn, Lady of Rohan, and thought her fair and cold, like a morning of pale spring…" She didn´t really know how that quote came to mind. It had been a while since she had given the book toDawn to read.

She shook her head violently. It had to be a spell of some sorts.

" Who are you?" she whispered.

Buffy could feel Spike going down on bended knee behind her. He let out a sharp breath.

She shot him an irritated look.

" What are you doing? What is she?"

Spike looked at Buffy, biting his lips.

  Bloody hell  ….……..there was nothing left to do except……

The woman nodded to him, almost like she was giving him permission to speak. It unnerved Buffy beyond compare. Spike´s voice was solemn, almost reverend as he cleared his throat to speak.

" Buffy Anne Summers, the vampire- slayer, may I introduce her ladyship Selena Amoret Indajaan, the Stormborn, Lady of the Shadows,  Keeper of the Dusk and Twilight, Daughter of Oberon, Princess of the Royal - Court of Fairy."

Buffy blinked.

" Fairy?" she asked nonplussed.

" She´s a freakin´fairy princess? And that ….whole thing is her name?"

The girl laughed. It was the most pleasant sound Buffy had ever heard, like the comforting purring of a contented cat or the gurgling of a quiet well.

" Oh n…most of that is titles, I have a few…."

Her voice filled the air, even though she was not speaking very loudly. The sound made Buffy think of something warm, something balmy.

" You are a fairy- princess?" Buffy repeated , feeling a little out of her dephts.

Selena gave her another smile, nodding slowly while her hand roamed over the wolf´s fur.

" Aren´t you supposed to have wings or something?"

She laughed again.

" Oh …..some have, but I´m not that kind of fairy …..I don´t sprinkle dust or leave coins under pillows in exchange for children´s teeth."

" Wow …so your father is the King of fairies, really?"

" Oberon, yes. The english writer got that right. But to be quite honest I´m fairly far down the line in succession to the throne and since my parents are immortal and not very likely to ever step down, it is of no consequence…" 

She answered with a faintly amused smile. 

Buffy lifted an eyebrow.

" Ok ….so not to be unfriendly or disrespectful but ….what do you want?"

 "I have come ….to ask for your help."

You like it? Let me know if I shall go on…


	2. Strange Allies

NOTES: BUFFY BELONGS TO JOSS WHEDON and MUTANT ENEMY!!!! I own none of then ..except Selena and her folks.

NOTES: THanks for the feedback! This is my first Buffy fic, been doing Firefly so far! 

STRANGE ALLIES

„ My help?" 

Buffy asked suspiciously.

" What…for?

" I really don´t like to discuss things of great importance in the middle of back-alley, if you don´t mind." Selena answered gently, still smiling.

" Why don´t we finish our discussion at your beautiful home. I´ll be awaiting you there."

Before Buffy could even say anything a sharp gust of wind blew through the alley, sweeping an unnatural cloud of mist over them. Only seconds later the fairy was gone.

" I hate it when they do that!" Spike mumbled, getting back on his feet.

" Tell me she did not just vanish into thin air….."

" She didn´t!"  he answered, patting the dirt of his black jeans.

" Not really…."

" Then how did she just disappear like that.?"

Siobhan laughed bitterly, shaking her head.

" She´s a fairy, a princess of the ancient blood. She can do pretty much whatever she likes!"

" She travels on the wind, it´s a neat trick." 

Buffy crossed her arms in front of her chest, staring at Spike.

" So she´s for real, she is a fairy-princess…..and she´s waiting for me in my own home with some request."

" She´s as real as they come, pet."

He looked at her puzzled features and couldn´t surpress a grin.

 "What? After all the things you´ve seen and fought, you didn´t really think that the stories about fairies were folklore, did you?"

Buffy shrugged, biting her lip.

" Sort of …yeah."

The vampire chuckled to himself.

" I wish Rupert were here to see this….."

" So I guess I´ll go home and ….talk to the fairy, ha?"

" Better not to make her wait."

Buffy sighed, pulling her cell-phone out of  her pocket to call Dawn.

" Dawn…..hi.No I´m outside , it´s fine. Yes I´m ok, but I need to take care of something at home. Could you stay with Willow until I call you?

No, really everything is alright. I´ll call you later, I can´t talk now."

Sighing heavily she switched the phone off. 

" Better not tell her there´s fairies involved yet, she´d be all over this."

" Yeah, the little bit has turned into quite the little watcher, hasn´t she?"

Buffy rolled her eyes in mild resignation.

" Tell me about it! One day she´s just a Freshman in Highschool next thing I know she´s translating Sumerian texts ……when did she learn that? Hell, I can´t even speak French!"

They walk through the darkening streets of Sunnydale towards the Summer´s house in silence.

Buffy´s gaze wandered curiously from the blond vampire at her right to the banshee on her left. " So what else can she do….."

" What do mean, love?"

" Besides the fancy vanishing act and the whole being pretty much the most incredibly beautiful woman anyone has ever seen, what else is she capable of power-wise? She seems to have you two whipped like ……well, why do you…"

Spike shot Siobhan a foul look before answering.

" You mean, why does she have power over us?"

Now Spike  really wished that Giles could be there to do the explanatory part. He had never been good playing the part of Mr. Exposition.

Buffy nodded.

" Yeah, you´re a vampire, she´s a banshee…..you are strong and both quite powerful. Yet you seem to fear her."

" It´s all in the titles. She´s a princess of royal fairy blood, that makes not only immortal but also very strong. We both have preternatural strength and all, but her majesty could squash us both like tiny bugs!"

Buffy raised her eyebrows. 

" She didn´t look that strong to me."

Spike snickered.

" Neither do you, pet, and you are the  slayer, but you got one mean left hook. Selena could probably twirl a grown elephant around the room without even breaking a sweat."

" Okay, so she is stronger than you, but ….what´s with the whole power thing?"

" As he said, it´s her titles…" Siobhan cut in, smiling faintly, as though the thought that the slayer did not know about these things amused her.

" She is Lady of the Shadows, Keeper of the Dusk and Twilight, that´s not just a bunch of big words. Selena is three times darkness. As Lady of the Shadows she commands those who dwell in the shadows, as most beasties do, since we don´t really like the sunlight.

She is also the keeper of dusk which is the time a newborn vampire rises from his grave the first time. And twilight, well that´s when most monsters crawl out of their hiding spots."

" Whoa …you mean to tell me that she is able to command most preternatural creatures in the area?"

Spike nodded gravely, not liking the expression on his slayer´s face.

" She´s that powerful?" Buffy swallowed hard.

" Yes." He answered simply.

" So how can you hurt her, I mean just in case. What works? I guess stakes won´t do no good, ….crosses, holy water?"

Siobhan laughed again, this time it sounded like a toned down version of her screech. Buffy winced against her will. It sounded like fingernails drawn over a blackboard.

" It´s hard to scare someone off with a symbol of faith that hasn´t been around as long as that someone."

" Isn´t steel supposed to hurt fairies?"

" The common ones, yes. But it won´t work on someone who´s seen  Troy fall ……..

Steel does not hurt the old ones. See the reason why we call them the ancient blood is because they are indeed ancient. They can command us if they please because of their power and their power is rooted in their age. We obey them because their power over us is irresistible. There is nothing alive on this earth anymore that is older than the fairy, they predate everything."

Buffy was quite sure by now that she did not like what she was hearing. 

" How old is she?"

Spike shrugged uncomfortably.

" We don´t really know, pet. Nobody does."

" The fairies, the old ones have been walking this earth before time was time, in a world before men." Siobhan whispered.

" Whoa …."

Buffy shook her had in disbelief.

" You can´t be serious…."

The banshee lifted her eyebrows at her, as though Buffy had just said something incredibly amusing.

" At Oberon´s court Selena is also known as the Stormborn. They say that thunder lies in her step, and that´s not just because she can ride the Stormwind.  Selena was born during the worst storm the fairy can remember. When she was born, it is said that the heavens opened their gates and flooded the earth with rain. She has seen the wars between fairy and men, before history was written. She has seen the rise of the human race ever since your ancestors crawled out of their caves."

Buffy stopped dead in her tracks, staring into the banshees dark eyes. There was no deceit in them.

" Okay,  ..I get it. She is ancient; she has all her bases covered. Are you saying there is no way I can hurt her?"

"  Hurt her maybe, but I very much doubt that even the three of us together could kill her." Spike said matter of factly.

" Maybe we won´t have to…." Siobhan added.

" She obviously wants something from the slayer. She did not order her around, she asked her for her help!"

Spike pursed his lips, desperately wishing for a cigarette. But he had given up on smoking because Buffy didn´t like it. The things he did for that girl…..

As they approached the Summer´s house Buffy could make out two tall men standing on the veranda.

One of them was slender with long, grey hair. He stood as still as a statue, his arms behind his back. His skin had the same colour as Selena´s, softly shimmering in the night like polished marble. The other man was burlier, his black hair in a military buzz cut. There were tattoos on his face and his naked arms. His skin was darker than his companion's, a rich, healthy bronze tone. His whole appearance reminded Buffy of a maori- warrior. He was older than the first one.

The long haired man turned his face towards them, his eyes were a clear amber glowing slightly.

" Looks like we got company." Buffy uttered under her breath.

" Bodyguards…" Spike whispered to her.

" She only brought two of them.  I told you she travelled light!" 

The banshee smirked in Spike´s direction.

Buffy frowned.

" Bodyguards? After all you two have just told me this princess seems to be as close to invincible as you can ever get. What does she need protecting from?"

" Other fairies…." Siobhan said coldly. " Or do you all humans love each other unconditionally? Because the fairies don´t."

" Oh....why did she come to the alley alone then?"

" She didn´t, love. The wolf, remember."

Buffy looked back towards the grey haired man. His face looked young, ageless, but his hair was grey……..and he had amber coloured eyes. Buffy lifted her brows.

" A shapeshifter…." She breathed  " He´s not a werewolf, he´s a shapeshifter."

The man  bowed slightly in front of them when they reached the porch, giving Buffy a rewarding smile. Inwardly she cursed herself. He must have heard their whole conversation.

" Her ladyship is awaiting you!" he said in a dark voice, opening the door for them.

" Great …." She mumbled, staring to feel very annoyed.

" She´s  receiving me in my own house!"

The princess was lounging on the couch. She had taken off her hooded cape, revealing a black silk blouse with only two buttons closed above her chest. The shining fabric set off her colourful hair and perfect, pale skin. 

If possible she looked even more beautiful than before, leaning on one arm as though she was posing for a portrait. In fact, Buffy thought, Selena looked so effortlessly striking, as if somebody had just poured her over the couch.

" I´m glad you made yourself at home…" Buffy told her impatiently.

The fairy gave her a faint smile that made the slayer feel reproved and at the same time warm inside. 

" Come, sit with me Buffy!" 

She held out her hand, the smile spreading over her full lips.

Buffy felt her breath catch in her throat. The pull was incredible, like swimming against the tide……. only that Selena was more like a tidal wave.

The thought crossed Buffy´s mind that, if she could just take that hand, if she could just surrender to the longing she suddenly felt, everything would just fall into place. Everything would be alright if she could just ….

She felt like something warm was melting inside of her.

She squeezed her eyes shut, shaking her head violently. Behind her Siobhan and Spike stood like frozen in time.

" Okay!" Buffy whispered hoarsely, " Let´s get one thing straight: If you really want my help, stop doing that! Stop using your weird fairy magic against me!"

Selenas smile widened, if that was even possible, but at the same time it grew more real. 

She gave Buffy an appraising look. 

She could still feel the magic wavering through the air, flowing through the room like a warm stream of water. It whirled all around Selena, making the air billow like heat.

" Stop it!" Buffy said, loudly this time.

" I meant it, stop this now!"

Spike moved towards her, putting a hand on her shoulder.

" It´s fairy magic, a glamour, pet."

" I´m not using it against you!" Selena told her serenely, her voice sweet and calm.

" You were , just now!"

" You are right. I apologize. I should not use petty tricks like this against a warrior such as yourself."

Buffy scoffed.

" Going for flattery now, your majesty?"

She could hear Spike´s sharp intake of breath behind her.

Selena lifted a perfectly shaped eyebrow, her eyes as grey and dark as the sky just before a storm. Thunder rolled in the distance.

She sighed, folding her hands in her lap.

" I did try to bedazzle you, but you have a very strong mind. I respect that, Buffy Summers. I will not attempt to win your sympathy or support  with magic, this I promise. But I can not switch this glamour off like a light. It is like a reflex. The glamour I have woven around me and mine is not to impress you, but to protect you."

Buffy stared at her for a moment.

" That does not make sense. My friend is a Wicca, a powerful witch, I know what glamour is used for. It is to make things seem different then they really are. You use it to alter my perception of you. True?"

Selena nodded once.

" True."

"I take it the way we see you is not the way you really look. If you want my help you cannot win it with tricks. Show us what you really look like!"

" Your vampire knows, ask him"

Buffy turned to look at Spike.

" What is she talking about?"

" Glamour does not work on the undead!" Siobhan answered for him.

"Fine!" Buffy said impatiently

" Then show me!"

" That´s not a good idea, love. Trust me."

" Why ..I take it she made herself irresistible, which  woman wouldn´t, if she could do this? I just wanna know what she really looks like, before I offer her my help."

" No, you don´t,pet!"

" Don´t tell me what I want, Spike! She can´t be that  ugly or scary."

" Scary,yes. Ugly ,no!"

" What ?"

Spike breathed deep, trying to reign down on his temper.

Why did she never listen to him?

" She´s not exaggerating her beauty or her effect on you, Buffy. She´s toning it down."

" You mean she made herself uglier?"

Spike nodded.

Buffy turned back to where the fairy was sitting, all shimmering hair and skin.

" No way…."

That exact moment, Buffy could feel the magic slipping away. She blinked, trying to make sense of what she was seeing. She gasped, staring at the iridescent creature, sitting on her couch. It was as though she had seen Selena on a black and white TV and now somebody had suddenly switched to colour. She could feel a tear sliding down her cheek.

Selena´s eyes met hers and for a second Buffy could see something moving inside those eyes, a feeling buried deep inside; overwhelming grief and sadness.

Without taking her look off the fairy in all her glory, she asked Spike.

" You always see her like this?"

" Yes.."

Buffy nodded. She had not understood before, but now she knew why all those creatures did as she commanded. It wasn´t just her beauty, it was her power……

Slowly Buffy could feel the glamour returning, it was like the sun going down.

" What is it that you want my help with?"

" Somebody has taken something from  me, someone who´s powers equal mine. I want it back. She has taken it without my consent, taken by force what is not rightfully hers, something very dear to me. Your power might tip the scale."

" Who is she?"

" My cousin."

" What has she taken from you?"

Selena stared at the slayer for a moment, her eyes like dark, groundless ponds.

" The captain of my guard!"


	3. Trust

TRUST

Buffy blinked.

It took a second for the information to register in her mind. A part of her was still completely bedazzled by what she had just seen ……

She shook her head violently to clear her thoughts.

 For a moment she felt like laughing …the whole situation was just too surreal. There was a real life Fairy –princess sitting in her living room, asking for her help!

Dawn would love this! And yet Buffy could not shake the eerie feeling that came over her….some sense of impending doom.

The fairy still sat there, unmoving like a statue.

" The captain of your guard, as in bodyguards?" 

Selena nodded, patting the sofa next to her, motioning Buffy to sit down.

" Why don´t you come sit with me, so we can talk like friends?"

Sitting down Buffy couldn´t help but frown, realizing that she was doing as she was told.

She sighed. This was going to  be very exhausting!

 Up close Selena was still extraordinarily beautiful, her skin clear and pale, flawless like the finest china.

" So you want us to help you to do what? Free him?"

" Yes, I want your help to get him back from her!"

" Why?"

" As I said …" Selena told her evenly.

" ….your strength might tip the scale. She is not a common fairy, she is of royal blood, of the ancient blood like me…..my powers alone will not be enough. And I don´t think she´ll return him to me without a fight!"

Buffy looked directly into the fairy´s eyes.

" Why …why did she take him and how? Excuse me for saying that, but the two guys outside on my porch  seem to be able to take care of themselves, they have to if their job is to protect you. Spike told me you are quite powerful, apart from that glamour magic. I imagine that the captain of your guard is no push-over either."

Selena gave a smallish laugh, like the gurgling of a soft flowing river.

" No ….he is not…"

She looked at Buffy for a moment as though considering the fact that she might have to explain.

" They are here for my protection, but they are mine to protect too…..and I take care of what´s mine. My cousin, the Lady Iolanthe Serena Miriamel has found it suiting her needs to apprehend my captain and not let him leave her realm again. I want him back!"

" Why don´t you tell her that?"

" I did …..she will not have it. She wants a confrontation."

Buffy felt her forehead crease up, she was not sure where this was going. She shot Spike a quick look, but the vampire simply shrugged.

" You are a princess, right? Why don´t you go to your father, he is the king after all, he can order her to…"

Selenas laughter interrupted Buffy in mid-sentence. It was a harsh, bitter sound with an almost metallic ring to it. Not at all pleasant or soothing.

" My father does not care!" Selena told her in a clipped tone.

" Oberon would never intervene on behalf of one of my guards."

Buffy sighed inwardly. This was just great! After beating the first…… one would think that fate would cut her some slack, but noooooo…..

Now she was getting involved in fairy politics!

" Iolanthe is provoking this and she knows that I know that. She wants me to come to her. She has some agenda I don´t know about yet. Cay was not supposed to have been there…in her reach."

"So you think this is really about you?"

" Oh no, it´s about him , but also about me…it is a very long story…"

Buffy´s eyes narrowed slightly, staring into the fairy´s storm grey eyes.

" Well if you want my help you´d better tell me the whole story…..so far I can´t tell who is the good guy here! If you want me to help you, you have to tell me the truth."

Selena stared back at her.

" Leave us…" she told Spike and Siobhan without even looking their way.

Spike looked as though he was trying very hard to resist the order.

" Will you be alright?"

Buffy was about to tell him that she could take care of herself, but seeing how much strain it was on him to resist Selena made her change her mind.

" I´ll be alright!"

Selena sighed. As she started talking, her voice became low and quiet, like a soft breeze rustling through leaves.

" Cay was not supposed to go to her. I ordered him not too, but he defied me. We suspected that Iolanthe had a plan. She asked me to come to her, offering information. She  claimed to have knowledge,…….. to have found something that I have been looking for… for a very long time. Whether this is actually true or not, I cannot say. But I turned her down."

" You do not trust her?"

Selena smiled sadly.

" No, I do not trust my cousin. She has been absent from court for hundreds of years, she carries a grudge against me. I doubt she has ever let it go!"

" A grudge?"

" Against me and Cay, yes."

" Are you lovers?"

Selena stared at her for a second, her face blank. It was still beautiful to behold but Buffy felt a shiver run up her spine. There was nothing in that face, despite of it´s beauty it suddenly seemed dead and empty like a doll´s.

" No." the fairy answered evenly.

" So he and your cousin …"

" No!" Selena repeated tonelessly.

Buffy frowned in frustration.

" If you want me to help you I need to understand this!"

" I told you the truth…" the princess stated with an almost inaudible sigh. Her features alive once again, with the light bouncing of her skin in a manner that Buffy had never seen in any creature.

" Cay is a handsome man, he turned many a lady´s head at my father´s court. He is a warrior, a knight of ancient blood, known for his valour. He is a good catch you might say. Iolanthe had her eye on him. She wanted him to become her companion, her consort. Cay had no inclination towards Io …..but there was no polite way to turn her down. She is the king´s niece….Instead of becoming her consort he choose to take the post as captain of my guard."

Buffy nodded. It surprised her that she understood. She found herself remembering  the political science courses she had taken in college, not really grasping the workings of world politics…..and now she understood the workings of the royal fairy court! Take that Professor Schamhein, she thought.

" Ahh….since you are higher up in the aristocracy than your cousin, she could not take offence by that, right?"

Selena smiled at Buffy.

" You understand!" she said surprised.

" She was offended of course, but she would not openly admit it. But believe me, my cousin felt very insulted. The Lady of Dawn, Mistress of the morning dew, the swan-princess of the fairy court does not take kindly to being denied! Iolanthe is said to be the most beautiful of all fairies, the most desirable lady at my father´s court. To have a man turn her down is the worst offence she can imagine. She is after all a celebrated  beauty, the sunkissed one, the golden child……the sawnprincess!"

Buffy tried hard to imagine anyone being more beautiful than Selena and shook her head. None of this made any sense to her.

" If she is that desirable, why did he turn her down?"

Selena sat up straighter, looking straight into Buffy´s eyes. Her  facial expression was solemn and almost sad.

" We both know that beauty is not everything, Buffy."

Buffy suppressed a mocking cough. That was easy to say if you were a magnificently dazzling fairy.

And yet there was something in Selena´s voice that made Buffy furrow her brow. It was more the absence of something, the slayer realised. Selena´s voice had become more real. There was no hint of rustling leaves or gurgling wells in that voice now. It was still soft and pleasant, but it was just a voice ….

It made Buffy nervous. She thought about what Selena had just said.

" What do you mean ……what is it about your cousin that made this Cay turn her down?"

she asked gravely. 

There was an ice cold feeling in the pit of her stomach that made Buffy feel like she didn´t really want to know.

" Iolanthe has the reputation of being ……a little extreme, vengeful ."

The fairy answered slowly, choosing her words very carefully.

" How?"

Selena scowled for a second.   
" I was told that my cousin….considers some things as amusing, or should I say amusement…..things that are not to everybody's liking."

Buffy´s brows shot upward.

" What are you saying? That your cousin is a pervert?"

" I would not say that."

Selena leaned back, thinking. 

" You have to understand that most of us fairies are very old. We have been around since the dawn of creation……for some this long time has gotten …tedious for lack of a better word. Some have lived a thousand lifetimes and it has …..bored them They are looking for ways of distracting themselves from their eternal existence. It has made them …."

" Cruel…" Buffy said tonelessly.

Selena still looked her in the eye. 

" Yes."

Buffy nodded absentmindedly, moving her hands over her arms as though she was cold.

She swallowed, looking away from the fairy princess next to her, turning her head towards the door Spike had disappeared through.

" And what is it that your cousin does to distract herself from mentioned boredom?"

Selena sat next to her, utterly still and unmoving like a precious statue.

" Iolanthe enjoys pain. She indulges causing pain……drawing blood. It makes her feel alive."

Buffy´s head snapped back towards the fairy. 

There was something in her face now, almost hidden under millennia of self control, but Buffy could see it simmer underneath the surface …..fear. Not fear for herself, but fear for someone else …….

" I need to get him back…." Selena whispered harshly.

" He was not supposed to meet her, I knew it was a trap. I told him and still he went ….."

" Why did he ?" 

Selenas face turned blank again, hiding all feeling. Buffy had to resist the urge the lean forward, to touch that pale face in order to feel if it had indeed turned into a cold, hard mask.

" For love…"

Buffy stared at her, digesting the answer she had not seen coming. Two words…..a universe of possibilities.

" Yours"

" Yes."

" You said you aren´t lovers."

" We are not …..we never were….Iolanthe lured him there under the pretense of having information. Information that would mean nothing to her but everything to me, the whereabouts of …….someone close to my heart."

" Then……why…..oh…"

Buffy understood. 

" I still don´t see how I can help you……" 

" I want you to come with me, to help me free him …fight by my side if need be."

Buffy thought about it for a second.

" Come with you ……but where……where is your cousin now?"

" Where would you think the most vain and nacicist person you can even imagine would be, Buffy? My cousin has found it pleasurable to spent her time in Los Angeles…away from the court."

" L.A?" Buffy jumped up from the couch, moving away from the fairy. Los Angeles …Angel ….whoa …there was no way….

" Sorry …your majesty but I can´t ….I really can´t! And I don´t think you´ll need my help..on this …."

Selena looked at her, utterly still. Then she stood, a fluent motion, as though her whole body was liquid. Buffy knew that no creature she had ever seen could move like that. It was both graceful and threatening.

" Please Buffy, come with me. "

She said it seriously, matter of factly.

" I would hate it to have to stoop to my cousin´s level in order to have your help. But I will do it none the less."

" What?" Buffy took a step back. There she was …a fairy princess, a beautiful, bedazzling thing. From the looks of it nothing more than a a girl on the cusp of womanhood, a fragile, delicate figure. But her eyes carried the storm inside of them …Buffy could hear thinder roling in the distance.

" I want to make this clear, so there will be no misunderstandings, Buffy. I need your help, I want your help. There is no limit to what I am willing to do to get back what is mine. I take care of my own and I will not see one of them destroyed by the vanity or cruelty of my own kin. It is your right to deny me and no harm will come to you or your  friends, if you do. But you will pay a price and you should be sure you will be willing to pay it, for not helping me."

Buffy swallowed hard. Selena´s face had gone hard once more, empty and blank as if it were just painted on. She might be able to fight her, but she would not win ….

" You said you will not hurt us."

" I won´t …..but I will take your vampire!"

Buffy blinked, shaking her head in confusion.

" What?"

" Your vampire, even if you will not help me. He will go to Los Angeles with me …he will go where I tell him to go. Whether I succeed or not, I will take him with me and he´ll never return to you!"

" You can´t do that!" Buffy gasped.

Selena smiled sadly, still beautiful even in her anger.

" You know I can ….. he loves you very much, I know. Believe me …I know what it would be like ….." 

She stepped forward, grabbing Buffy´s hand faster than Buffy could pull it back. 

" You want to see pain? Let me show you….."

!


	4. Things Past

DISCLAIMER: Buffy belongs to Mutant Enemy and the evil genius known as Joss Whedon …..I only borrow them with deep respect! Please don´t sue me!!

Selena and her folks are mine….

NOTES: Thanx for the feedback! Special thanx to organized chaos for those very nice remarks that make my writer heart very happy! 

That´s what keeps me going!

Will have more soon!

THINGS PAST

„ He loves you very much …."

Buffy could feel the world go dark around her until there was nothing left. It felt like falling, like rushing down an elevator shaft. There was nothing left, nothing to cling to but the sound of Selena´s voice. The world had become a swirling mess.

" …when I look into his heart I can see that he holds you dear above everything else. You are more important to him than his own survival. I don´t know what it is that keeps you away, that prevents you from giving in to this feeling…..but take my advice; don´t let this pass you by. Somebody who will love you like this, seeing who you really all with all your  flaws, your weaknesses and short-comings, your strength. Love you for what you really are without wanting to change a single thing is such a rare thing …..don´t let pride stand in your way. I will show you the price to pay for not seeing and then you will decide if it´s worth loosing your vampire….."

Buffy winced. She found herself still on her feet in a darkening room with walls of rough stone. There was a window high up in the wall through which mountains could be seen, a forest in winter. At the other side of the room was an open fireplace, the only source of light and warmth in the room.

" What the hell is going on?" Buffy whispered to herself. 

Selena stood in front of the fire-place as though she did not notice Buffy. It took the slayer to realize that this was indeed the case. It was as though she wasn´t really there, as though she was just a fly on the wall.

The fairy wore an ivory coloured dress with wide arms. The upper part was tight, with a low neckline that only hinted at the perfect cleavage, while the skirts were a billowing mass of shiny material that swished around her legs, hiding her feet completely.

" Please , I beg of you …don´t go!" 

She was pacing in front of the fire, her voice for once feeble and raw with emotion.

She was talking to a tall man, her whole figure dwarfed by his size. He was wearing an armour unlike any Buffy had ever seen in books or even a museum. His dark brown hair fell to his shoulders, he was handsome in his very own rugged way. His hands were curled around Selena´s upper arms in a gesture that seemed familiar, almost intimate.

" I have to …my father called to me!" his voice was dark and firm.

" Your human father, the father who did not acknowledge you until he needed your help!" 

Selena stared up at him, craning her neck to look up at his face. 

" He is old, Amoret…" 

Buffy stared at them, dimly remembering that this was Selena´s second name. Amoret …….she apparently did not use that name anymore.

"He is scared!", she spat out as though the words left a bitter taste in her mouth.

" He is old and scared. Menoth, king of the winterlands, he can feel death coming to claim him and now he calls for his son….the son of the fairy- creature that he could not suffer to look upon all his life. The constant reminder of his own mortality! Now that the darkness and the ice are coming to conquer this world again, to bury all life, bringing the creatures of the dark with them……now he calls to you to save his kingdom. To save what cannot be saved!"

Buffy could see tears glitter in the fairy ´s eyes, the sadness and grief in her features left her beauty unperturbed.

" That may be so, but he is still my father and I his son! I have a duty , Amoret! I cannot let his people perish!"

" Those people made you an outcast at the court of your own father!" 

Selena freed herself from his grasp, stumbling back a few steps.

" They shunned your mother because she was fairy, because she did not age like your father! She gave him a son and they drove her away because they could not stand to be around her! The drove her away and you with her …..your father´s only son! And now you want to save them?"

She started pacing the room again, her eyes never leaving his face. Thunder rolled in the distance. Her multicoloured hair spilled over the back of her ivory dress like a shining waterfall.

" We have a duty to protect them.." he said quietly. 

As Selena stood to face him, Buffy instinctively took a step backwards until she felt the rough stone of the wall in her back.

" Why…?" Selena whispered, shaking her head.

" You have not seen what I have seen! I was there when the people of your father still dwelled in caves, the different tribes slaughtering each other over nothing……they are animals and they hate us!"

He moved towards her in two long strides, his hand cradling her cheek gently.

" How can they not hate such beauty…….beauty like yours that will never fade. You, my princess will never know the cold touch of the ages; you will never wither away and die. The fairy are eternal, immortal……"

" Evarion ….." she whispered, leaning against him, clinging to him as though her life depended on it.

" Please don´t leave! I have this feeling of impending doom, the feeling that if you leave ……you may never return!"

He laughed pulling her to him.

" You could come with me…." he whispered into her hair.

Selena looked up, staring at him.

" How can you ask me that? You know that I can not go with you. I am a princess of the

 ancient blood, daughter of Oberon and Titania. I will not suffer what has been done to your mother!"

She grabbed his hands, squeezing them so hard that her knuckles turned white.

" Neither should you, my love! They will only see you for what your mother was! You don´t age….."

" I age slower than the humans, Amoret, but I do age ……I can take an arrow to the chest, maybe even a sword, and survive ……but eventually I will die. I am not immortal!"

The look Buffy saw on Selena´s face was of utter grief and pain. She looked like she had been struck, as though the flawless white skin of her face would scatter and fall apart in a thousand pieces.

" Not if you stay here with me…." she breathed heavily.

" We removed ourselves from their sphere. You could stay here with me where summer is eternal. We can be happy here…….my love, forever!"

" You know I can´t!" He said, his voice clipped and hoarse.

" But I will return …."

" There is no stopping the ice or the wild hordes that come with it, Evarion! I have seen it before! You could die out there, fighting the war that is not yours!"

She reached up to touch his face.

" If you love me, you will not leave me!"

He laughed sadly, covering her hand with one of his, planting a kiss on the palm.

" For your love…." He said grimly

" For your love I would have lit the world on fire,  princess!"

" And yet it is not enough…." She said, her voice filled with bitterness. 

" Wait for me…." 

He kissed her forehead, then stepped back, looking at her as though he was trying to imprint her picture into his mind.

Their parting kiss was fierce, passionate. Even as he moved away from her, Selena still held on to him, until he stepped out of the door.

Then she crumbled to the floor like a puppet whose strings had been cut, crying, sobbing, and making sounds like an animal in pain.

Another man came in, carefully gathering her up from the floor. 

Buffy tried to suppress a gasp. This was most likely the most handsome man she had ever seen. He was beautiful and at the same time undoubtedly masculine with black hair and straight, aristocratic features that seemed strangely exotic.

" Princess……."

" Help me up, Cay…." She said, taking a deep breath. Slowly steadying herself, she stepped away from him. She still held on to his hand, as she turned towards the window.

" You are not well….."

Buffy could almost see the feeling seeping away from the fairy´s face until it was unadorned. Buffy recognized the expression all too well. It was that blank, lifeless face that she had seen earlier.

" My heart ……today my heart is riding into a battle that cannot be won. I fear I shall never see it again." She whispered tonelessly.

Cay stared at her, his face unreadable.

She turned back to him, her face still empty and dead.

" What is it?"

" I should not bother your ladyship at this time…."

" I said what is it?"

" Your cousin, my princess…"


	5. Truths

DISCLAIMER: All belongs to Joss Whedon, except Selena and her folks ….

NOTES: Thanx to Keepthe Faith for your kind reviewsand all you others who r&r, it keeps me writing.

This is just a small interlude before it´s ooff to L.A

The quote is from the song " Kissing You" by Des´re

Truths

The right can stand a thousand trials

The strong will never fall

But watching stars without you my soul cries

Buffy shook her head, feeling as though she was waking from a deep slumber.

Carefully opening her eyes the slayer found herself in her living- room again. She stood backed up against the wall, hearing the banshee sing a beautiful but sad love-song. 

Romeo& Juliet …..Buffy remembered watching the movie with Dawn a few times,  when her little sister had become obsessed with Baz Luhrmann in the Moulin Rouge aftermath.

Even though Siobhan was still outside on the porch her voice was as clear and resonant as though she was standing next to Buffy.

Selena stood in the middle of the room, staring out of the window, her face still devoid of any movement.

Buffy swallowed hard. Remembering how her face had looked like with tears running down her porcelain skin.

The fairy had shared something intimate with her and Buffy wasn´t quite sure how she felt about that yet. It could just be another trick, another way to manipulate …..but somehow she did not think so.

As to how the fairy had just sent her back into her very own painful- memories – limbo, Buffy didn´t even  want to know!

" Why me?" she finally asked.

" You ……you are powerful, you can command every monster or so Spike has told me! You can probably raise an army of them and ….."

Selena turned around to look her in the eye.

" I cannot do that."

" What, but the banshee said you…."

" Do I have the power to bend an army of monsters to my will and let them march against my cousin? Yes……I could do that, but I will not."

" Why?"

" Because it would be wrong."

Buffy stared at the fairy in utter confusion. She could feel the anger rise inside of her.

" Oh …so that would be wrong, but blackmailing me into helping you isn´t? I thought there is nothing you would not do…"

Selena still stared at her, unmoving like a statue.

" You don´t understand…."

" Indeed I don´t!"

 Selena sighed, tugging a strand of bronze coloured hair behind her ears. For the first time Buffy got a glimpse at the pointed tops of the fairy´s  ears.

" I cannot use them because they are …monsters, they are evil!"

" And?"

" There are rules….a code of conduct, Buffy ….rules that even I can not change! I claim to be on the right side in this conflict with my cousin. I only want to fight her because she won´t return my guard to me, so I have to go and free him …..it is my right to do so if she is in the wrong."

Buffy felt her brows knit together in surprise. 

They had codes of conduct for this kind of thing?  

But finally she thought she understood.

" So let me get this straight…..what you are trying to tell me is that in order to be on the safe side on this little rescue mission of yours, you cannot  use …..evil creatures? So that later you can prove that you did nothing wrong?"

" Yes."

" But it is okay to blackmail me into helping you?"

" There are no rules about that." Selena told her. 

Buffy could have sworn that she sounded almost smug.

" But that means that ….." Buffy looked out of the window in front of which Spike was still pacing up and down.

" Vampires and banshees are definitely not in the cuddly puppy category, they would be considered as evil too….."

Selena lifted one of her perfectly arched eyebrows at her, her face still unreadable.

" Yes…..but not this vampire, not this banshee…."

Buffy nodded. She could also feel a faint blush creeping up her neck towards her cheeks. The damn fairy had read her mind……she still felt the desire to cringe, remembering what Selena had said about Spike.

Buffy bit her lip.

" Why me ?" she asked again, quieter this time.

Selena returned her gaze steadily.

" You are the slayer …..you are a force of good."

For a moment there was silence as Buffy thought about all the things she had done that could not really be considered as " good"……

After she had come back from the dead, from heaven, she had hurt people……hurt her friends, her sister, herself ……Spike…

He was the person she had hurt the most in all that time even though right then and there he had been the one least deserving of her resentment. She had hurt him physically and emotionally and yet she had always relied on him to be there…….accepting, forgiving, giving her a piece of his mind when she needed it.

" And …."

Buffy snapped out of her reverie to see the mask fall. The indifference was gone. Selena´s features flooded with emotion and Buffy could feel them spill over, breaking over her like a wave. The feeling made her skin tingle with warmth.

" I want you to understand why I do this, blackmailing you as you say! I want you to understand this Buffy. Cay is immortal, not like your vampire but truly immortal! Whatever my cousin will do to him, whatever ways her twisted mind will find to hurt him and hurt him she will…..it will not kill him! Do you understand that? He cannot die……..he can never die! His torment will be eternal!"

 " If I do this …..you will leave……you will leave me and my friends Spike alone?"

" When Cay is free……you have my word."

" Fine." Buffy conceded still feeling defeated.

" What about my sister, my friends ..I can´t just leave...."

" No harm shall come to them, they are under  my protection, no monster or demon would dare to go against my word.  I will leave Seno with them, if you wish. He will protect them should that be necessary, but it won´t. I give you my oath, slayer…."

Buffy nodded.

 The coldness was back, Selena had retreated behind her mask of indifference again. As she turned to grab her phone out of her jacket to call Dawn she felt the fairies touch on her shoulder. It was a light, almost unreal touch, like the wings of butterfly brushing her skin.

Buffy whirled around to find Selena standing right in front of her, close enough that she could feel her breath on her cheek.

Up close like that Buffy could only marvel at the dreamlike splendour of the fairies appearance. Especially since she knew that without the glamour Selena was about a hundred times more breathtaking. They were about the same height, so Buffy found herself gazing directly into Selena´s storm grey eyes. 

" It is not just because you are the slayer , Buffy Summers." She finally said huskily.

Buffy  frowned. 

" What do you mean ……?"

" There is another slayer, I believe. I could have chosen her, I didn´t. I choose you because you know….."

" Know what?"

Selena returned Buffy´s intent look, there was a tension that seemed too thick to even cut with a knife.

" What it´s like to love two very different men." The fairy answered tonelessly.

Buffy tried not to stare at the fairy open  mouthed. This was all by far to confusing and annoying. No matter where she turned …the fairy was already there adding to the confusion.

Buffy did not know what to say. 

She opened her mouth, but she was at a loss for words…….

She felt another shiver running down her arms. It took her a moment to realize that this time it was not due to Selena´s presence. It had indeed become very cold in the room.

" What exactly is it you think you are doing?" the voice rang in the heavy silence like a shot.

Buffy turned around, already in a fighting stance. 

The newcomer was leaning against the wall behind them, casually as though  he was waiting for a friend. His face was bemused and bared a  slightly impatient look at the same time. His handsome face was framed by white hair that hung straight down to his waist, his artic blue eyes trained on Selena. In contrast to his white hair his eyebrows and lashes were black as coal.

Buffy´s eyes wandered between him and Selena just as the door burst open and Selena´s bodyguards charged through the door with Spike and Siobhan on their heels.

They stopped dead in their tracks as soon as their eyes fell on the strange man.

Selena sighed impatiently. 

" I was wondering when you were going to catch up with me Liath……"

She turned, sitting down on the armchair facing them all. Just sitting there she looked regal, aw-inspiring despite of her size.

The stranger bowed deep.

" It pleased her ladyship to let me catch up with her, I presume."

At Buffy´s questioning glance Spike moved to stand beside her. He shrugged his shoulders, looking anxious.

" Who is that?"

Spike gave her an odd look. 

" Never seen that bloke before….does it really matter, seems to me we already got enough bloody trouble on our hands with the fairy I know!"

Selena seemed to ignore Spike´s comment, though Buffy was quiet sure that she had heard it.

" So have you come with orders from my father to drag me back to the summerlands….?"

The white haired man grinned at her as though all of this really amused him. 

" No…" 

Selena arched an eyebrow. 

" You should have told me, your majesty!" he said reproachfully.

" I would have gone with you!"

"You are my father´s knight, Liath, you obey his orders…."

" Damn you, Selena , he is my friend!"  Liath yelled suddenly, staring at the princess.

" He is my best friend , you should have told me!"

" So you are not here on my father´s orders?"

" Your father doesn´t even know that I left the court….."

" This could land you in trouble…."

Liath grinned wickedly. 

" It´s not a place I haven´t been before!"

Selena nodded slowly. 

Buffy had followed the whole exchange with growing aggravation. She really had it with all these secrets.

" Alright…who is this?"

All looks turned to her, but this time Buffy did not feel intimidated. These fairies and there intrigues, they could all just go to hell. But then again, had she really expected the royal court of fairy to be any different from the human politics?

Liath raised his eyebrows, giving Buffy an interested look.

" Buffy Summers, the vampire slayer, may I introduce my  cousin Liath ab Sunt, Commander of the palace guard, Lord of snow and frost. I guess he will accompany us to Los Angeles."

" You think it wise to let him come along?" Siobhan asked carefully, bowing as low as she possibly could.

Selena´s lips curved into a devious smile.

" Now that I think about it, indeed…….." she exchanged a look with her grey-haired guard. He snickered and shook his head.

" The sun-kissed one hates the cold."


	6. Secrets

 DISCLAIMER: The fairies are mine, everything else belongs to Joss!!!!

NOTES: THANX for the Feedback …..I cherish it!

SECRETS

Their names were Seno and Len. 

Len was the slender, grey-haired one, the taller of Selena´s two guards. He nodded, giving Buffy a wry smile as Selena introduced him to her. His clear, amber coloured eyes glowed dimly in the light and Buffy found herself remembering, that Len was also a shapeshifter ……..a silver furred wolf.

Senos was the burlier one, who reminded Buffy of a maori- warrior due to the intricate design of the tattoos on his face and naked arms. Up close he was even more intimidating with bulging muscles and a grim, seemingly unchanging facial expression. He looked like he might be able to snap the other guard´s spine like a twig. Still, if Buffy had to guess she was pretty sure that Len was the more dangerous one of the two.

Now they were  standing in front of the window by the couch, while Selena was immersed in conversation with Dawn. Liath had vanished again, to prepare for their arrival in Los Angeles …or so Buffy had been told.

Xander was completely enchanted by the fairy´s beauty and simply sat there, staring at her as though in a trance.

Willow had been sceptic at first, but even the Wicca could not quite withstand the fairy´s charms as they all listened to Selena telling a story about Puck´s chance meeting with an English writer named William Shakespeare.

Even though she looked to Buffy from time to time, trying to discern if there was a problem.

It was almost ironic, Buffy thought to herself. 

Explaining to Dawn and her friend´s that there was a fairy- princess in her house and that she would have to leave Sunnydale for a few days in order to help her had not been as big a deal as she had expected it to be.

She had been sure that Dawn would not be happy about it, but as soon as the word fairy had left her mouth, her little sister had been head over heels. 

The prospect of Buffy coming to a fairy´s aid had erased all negative feelings that Dawn might have come up with about this mission.

Selena was good, Buffy had to give her that. 

She was completely different with Dawn, radiating serenity, love and warmth. She was everything her little sister wanted to find in a fairy, everything Dawn needed to see after all the darkness and pain they had all experienced over the last few months. 

Buffy felt the weight of the princess´ gaze on her. She looked up and their eyes met…….Selena knew. Buffy wasn´t sure how, but somehow the fairy knew what Dawn needed to see, needed to believe.

Maybe she could read it in Dawn´s thought´s, Dawn´s heart. 

Her little sister had grown so much over the last few months, mentally grown to fill a void in their midst. Sometimes Buffy knew that it was far to easy to forget that after everything that Dawn had seen and done, after being a mystical power for half of eternity, …….Dawn was still a girl, a teenager who had lost her mother, lost her sister …..almost lost her life several times.

And now, after all the chaos and pain and destruction the girl needed to see something good,  something pure and unadorned, something to show her that there was more than evil to this world.

Buffy could see all that in the fairy´s eyes. Selena understood and she would give Dawn exactly that. She would be everything that Dawn needed to see, perfection, beauty and kindness.

Buffy could see it; the way Selena smiled, the way she seemed to glow from within, the way her eyes sparkled for Dawn ………

The fairy´s laughter  was a sweet, innocent sound like the faint ringing of wind-chimes, something almost touchable. Selena´s voice was like a warm current, drifting through the room as she entertained them with a seemingly unending flow of anecdotes about the royal court.

Buffy smiled at Dawn´s facial expression. Her little sister was amazed and happy. She would do nothing to burst Dawn´s bubble …..she liked her sister happy.

" May I use your shower?"

" Ha?"

Buffy tore her eyes away from Dawn to find Siobhan in front of her.

" I´d like to take a shower, before we leave for L.A…..I still smell the club on me, the Bronze with all the smoke . May I use your  shower?"

The slayer stared at her for a second, comprehending the request.

She should probably freshen up and start packing a few things ……

"Okay…."

First I get blackmailed by a fairy and now the banshee wants to take a shower, Buffy thought to herself ……..no her life could not get any weirder.

" Where ?"

" I´ll show you!" 

 Once Selena and the guards were completely immersed in talking to Dawn, Spike followed Buffy up the stairs. 

Quietly he entered her room. Buffy was packing her bag, mentally listing things she would need.

Spike closed the door from the inside, leaning against it with his arms crossed over his chest.

" I need you to tell me what she said."

Buffy looked up, glancing directly into his incredibly blue eyes.

Selena had been right, the simple idea of never seeing him again made her stomach turn. The thought that he might leave and never come back made her chest so tight, that for that moment Buffy couldn´t draw another breath.

She held his gaze for a second, then quickly averted her eyes, afraid of what he might read in them.

If this world is wearing thin

And you are thinking of escape

I´ll go anywhere with you

Just wrap me up in chains

But if you try to go all alone

Don´t think I´ll understand

Buffy heard an angry moan escape her lips, before she could control it.

The banshee´s velvety voice cut through the silence between them like a knife.

Of course …of course she had to sing under the shower. The bathroom was next door and Siobhan´s unnatural voice carried far ……. DAMN HER!

" Not much …." She lied, trying to sound casual. 

Too casual by far, considering the events of this night. 

He wasn´t buying it.

" I need you to tell me, love!"

Stay with me

Stay with me

" Now me and that bloody banshee are along for the ride, if we want to or not! But there is no reason for you to put yourself in that position so soon after  the big battle! She has no power over you, you don´t need to be part of her rescue- mission!"

 There was reason enough, she thought, but she´d rather bite off her tongue than tell him that.

Buffy sighed.

" Look, Spike …there is really nothing to it, okay? She explained the situation to me,  asked for my help. As far as I can tell she is trying to save someone …..she has no sinister masterplan to destroy the world, she just wants her friends save. I can relate to that, that´s why I ´ll be helping her!" she told him impatiently, stuffing a black sweater into her bag.

Spike lifted his scarred eyebrow at her. 

She did not tell him everything, he knew it …..he could see it in her face that the slayer was hiding something.

That damned, stubborn woman!

" I know you, slayer! I know that look on your face, something is up…!"

Even though he tried he could not quite keep the anger and frustration out of his voice.

After all this time, after all the fighting and almost dying and bleeding together…….she still withheld things from him. She did not trust him.

He took a deep breath to keep his cool.

" Listen, love. I have dealt with the fairy before, I know what some of them are like. She´s putting on a very nice show down there for the little bit, that´s just fine. But I know for a fact that most of them don´t take no for an answer. So what did she tell you in order to make you come with her? Did she threaten your friends or the bit?"

Buffy looked up. 

" No…" she answered, biting her lip. Technically it was not a lie…..

" She has given me her word that they will be safe, whatever happens. She´s even  leaving the big guy here to keep them safe, just in case."

In fact Selena had not even hinted at the possibility of hurting anyone …..not physically. She did not have to …..she had found another price that Buffy was not willing to pay.

Spike shook his head. 

" If it´s not the whelp, the witch and the niblet…..what kind of leverage does she have on you?"

Buffy swallowed hard. It was too painfully obvious and right in front of him, that he hadn´t guessed so far was a small miracle ……but she could not have him know!

She was not ready for that yet, she didn´t know what to do ……..she just didn´t know!

" Is that what it´s about?" Buffy snapped.

" You can´t imagine that I would want to help her because it´s the right thing to do?"

Spike pushed himself off the door, bridging the distance between them in three quick strides.

What were they fighting about anyway? 

Why couldn´t she see that he was only trying to protect her? Sure, he bloody well knew that she could take care of herself, but she was dealing with something entirely different this time and he needed her to see that!

" She´s a bloody fairy, pet! There´s always a catch when you deal with them! They may look like a better, purer, kinder version of humans, but they are not!"

Buffy zipped up her bag, remembering what Selena had said about some of her kin. That the boredom of an eternal life had made them cruel…….

" I know this is not going to be a walk in the park, Spike! Even so ….I gave her my word! I´ll go to L.A with her just like you and Siobhan.

In the silence of your room

In the darkness of your dream

You must only think of me

There can be no in- between

When your pride is on the floor

I´ll make you beg for more

Spike still stared at Buffy, letting out an exasperated breath.

„ Look ……you should not be involved in this! Please believe me just this once, pet! This whole thing is more dangerous than you can ever imagine!"

" Spike , I ….."

" No …..bloody hell, woman ! Can you just listen to me? I know what you see when you look at them, Buffy! I know better than you because they cannot hide from undead eyes! They are beautiful, opalescent …..they are everything they are said to be. And her majesty …..with that hair, the pointy ears and all that light bouncing of that perfect skin just the right way…..how old do you think she looks, ha? About Dawn ´s age ….give a year or maybe two? So sweet and harmless….."

She thought about it for a second…….there were times when the fairy indeed looked like a young girl, but Buffy had seen the other side. She had gotten a glimpse of the pain, the grief, the anger …….

" She is not harmless, I know that , Spike!" Buffy told him impatiently. 

" No,  she is not and you´d better remember that every step of the way! They can enchant you…..I´ve seen it happen. They may be beautiful, but some of them are monsters, love. Worse than me or peaches or anything you can imagine, unlike anything you have fought so far. And you cannot spot them by their horns or  teeth, because they are dazzling and bright and you cannot kill them."

He stared at her, looking into her eyes as though he was willing her to understand.

"You can scar them, cripple them if you´re lucky enough, but best case scenario is that you slow them down a little. No matter what you do to them, they´ll just keep on coming …..

I have seen someone shove a spear straight through Selena´s chest and she didn´t even flinch! They can take a lot more damage  than you and me, love!"

Stay with me

Stay with me

Spike stared at her until Buffy finally lifted her head to meet his gaze, her face unreadable.

He tried to think of something, anything to say, but he knew deep down inside that she had made up her mind. There was nothing he could do to change that and he could not force her to tell him the truth.

She was keeping something from him, he knew it and it hurt…..

" Fine…." He finally said coldly.

" Have it your way!"

He turned to leave, but Buffy got a hold of his coat.

" Spike ….please, let´s not do this."

He could see the exhaustion on her face and sighed inwardly.

" I´ll tell you, I promise…….when this is over……..we´ll …."

" It´s ok, love!"

He didn´t have the heart to tell her that when this was all over, they might be dead.

You better hope and pray 

That you make it save back to your own world.

Cause when you sleep at night

They don´t hear your cries back in your own world

Only time will tell

If you can break the spell back to your own world

He squeezed her hands lightly, only to find Buffy´s arms slide around his hips. Closing her eyes, Buffy leaned against him until the lines of their bodies were pressed together ever so lightly. Her head rested on his shoulder.

Spike hesitated a moment, then his arms went around her back, pulling her to him.

Buffy sighed. She felt so tired……but she knew, more now than ever that she could not loose him. She might still not be ready to give in to her feelings, she was still too angry, to scared or too proud …………but she could not loose him.

The feeling of his cold, hard body against her …so reassuring, so save ……

Stay with me 

Stay with me 

Stay …..Stay with me …..

" We´ll get through this, right?" she whispered huskily, not quite ready to leave the comfort of his embrace.

" Let´s make sure of it, pet!"

He carefully stroked her hair, just standing there together in silence as Siobhan turned off the water next door. Spike pressed his lips together……

Whatever it was that Selena had said to Buffy, it had the slayer scared…..…..


	7. Flame

Disclaimer: The Character´s of the Whedonverse belong all to Joss and Mutant Enemy. The fairies are mine!

Notes: Just a short chapter, I know …have soooo much fiction to write!! So please bear with me!!! Will update again soon!

Thanks for the feedback!!! 

Flame

The world had turned into a swirling, black mess. Buffy squeezed her eyes shut 

violently. 

Please, please just don´t let me be sic in front of all these people, she silently implored the powers that be.

" Hold on tight, don´t let go…….whatever happens!" 

She could still hear Selena´s voice in her head and the rushing of wind in her ears.

Like anybody would have to tell her that! Who knew where she might end up if that happened….Alaska, Dubai, Poland?

Buffy preferred to not put that theory to the test.

She held the fairy´s  hand tight enough to almost break it, but she did not let go. She could feel Siobhan squeezing her hand just as tight as the banshee tried to hold on to her grasp. Obviously creatures of the night favoured this way of travelling about as much as the slayer herself.

What had she been thinking, the slayer chided herself. That they would go to L.A by car or plane? 

Oh nooooo……that´s what normal people did! 

Her royal highness travelled on the wind and night air ……Buffy didn´t even want to know how she did it, or how she managed to take all of them with her…….

The moment she had taken the fairy´s hand it had felt like being pulled out of her own skin, a sharp uncomfortable tug.

What seemed like no more than ten minutes later, Buffy felt her feet touch solid ground again. Something like a sigh went through Selena, who swayed ever so slightly next to her. In contrast to the princess everybody else pretty much tumbled to the ground in one giant, tangled heap. 

" Ouch." 

Slowly and carefully Buffy opened her eyes. Spike had already scrambled back to his feet, patting the dirt of his duster. 

He held one hand out to her, helping her up. Buffy could have sworn she heard him mutter something like " bloody fairies" under his breath.

They were standing in front of what looked like a luxurious, modern mansion situated on a hill overlooking the city.

" You´ve got to be kidding me!" she whispered amazed.

Since when did fairy´s own magnificent mansions in the Hollywood hills? 

Spike arched his eyebrows at her, shrugging.

" Don´t look at me, love. I know about as much as you…."

Liath stood a little distance off to the side, as though he had been waiting for them, talking to a tall, pale woman with red hair. At their arrival they both turned towards them as if in slow motion. Liath´s hand moved upwards as if to cradle the woman´s  cheek, but the movement stopped in mid air. His finger´s traced the outline of her jaw, hovering just above her skin, but never actually touching her.

Buffy could hear Siobhan gasp as the woman bowed curtly in Selena´s direction, her hair tumbling over her shoulders like a living thing that had a will of it´s own.

" The living flame….." 

Liath whispered something to the woman, who looked at him for a second. Then she simply nodded and walked away, seemingly catching fire.

 It started with her long mass of hair that simply seemed to start burning, with every step she took more of her body was consumed by the fire,  until she was just a mass of moving flame. Then she was gone, leaving neither ash nor heat behind.

Buffy shook her head, he could feel her forehead starting to crinkle up.

" All those neat fairy tricks are seriously starting to bug me!"

Spike looked at her, trying not to snicker.

" Sian, Lady of fire, the living flame, Liath´s  second in command" 

Len explained quietly.

" Will she be part of this illustrious rescue party too?" Buffy asked impatiently.

" No …." Liath answered, " …she just informs me of what´s going on at the court!"

He turned to Selena with a smile.

" Everything has been prepared, my lady. Trollock is delighted to grant you the use of this humble abode as long as you stay in Los Angeles."

" Oh. I just bet he is!" Selena chuckled so low that it almost escaped Buffy´s hearing.

As they moved up the marble steps towards the mansion´s giant entrance the high doors swung open and a very tall, burly man stepped out.

He towered above all of them, almost like a giant. When he stepped out of the shadow of the door Buffy could see that his skin had a sickly, yellowish colour like ancient parchment. But the most peculiar thing about him was that, apart from a very flat, wide nose, he also sprouted four sharp looking tusks.

Great …a demon ……a big, ugly, most likely very dangerous demon ……this kept getting better and better

" Your Highness!" The creature said in a very rough, pronounced voice. 

Buffy figured it had to be pretty difficult to speak clearly due to the tusks.

He took a deep bow.

Selena nodded at him ceremoniously, still managing to look regal and superior even though her dainty form was dwarfed by the demon´s sheer size.

" Thank you for honouring me with your visit. All that is mine shall be yours……please accept this house as my present to you, your ladyship!"

Selena smiled, motioning him to stand up straight while her eyes roamed over the beautiful garden and the house."

" That will not be necessary, Trollock. My stay here will be short and I will not be needing your services for the time being. But I am very pleased with your hospitality. You will be rewarded!"

Buffy tried to not look surprised.

The  code of conduct apparently made no statement about not being allowed to live in an evil creatures amazing mansion ……..what a surprise!

The Demon bowed again as the princess moved by him, stepping into the marvellous entrance hall.

As the other´s moved to follow her lead, Trollock lifted his head, sniffing the air.

" Slayer!" He yelled, jumping forward to grab Buffy´s arm.

Buffy managed to slide out of his reach just in time to avoid his giant, clawed hands  squashing her wrist into a mass of bloody flesh and bone.

" Hey, keep your hands of her mate!" Spike yelled, throwing a punch at the demon´s gut.

" I will kill you both for that, vampire!"

Already in a fighting stance, Buffy could see Selena whirling around out of the corner of her eye.

" Trollock!" The fairy´s voice cut through the air like the crack of a whip.

The demon´s head snapped back towards her, teeth bared.

" You brought the slayer into my house!" he roared.

It was as though the temperature had dropped several degrees in a matter of seconds.

Buffy felt a shiver run down her arms and spine at the look on Selena´s face.

No monster, nothing she had ever seen in her live, no matter how ugly or scary could hold a candle to the pure anger in the fairy´s face.

The thunder she had heard rolling in the distance all night long suddenly broke out very loudly right above their heads.

The banshee shrunk back from her princess, instinctively stepping behind Len´s body.

She could see the change in Trollock´s face as he realized that he had yelled at the fairy princess.

" Forgive me, your Highness…I…"

Selena cut him off with an impatient gesture. Her face had become hard again, beautiful and threatening, perfect and unreal like a porcelain doll.

" The slayer is here at my request!" She said slowly, her voice calm and neutral, but with a cold, steely undercurrent that no one could miss.

" She is part of my entourage, Trollock, and that means that you will pay her the same respect and courtesy that you afford me and mine!"

She slowly moved forward with an almost impossible, unnatural liquid grace until she stood directly in front of the demon.

" I will not have you bother her with your petty hostility in any way. If anything happens to her during her stay in this city, if one of your minions gives her any kind of trouble, if anybody even so much as bends one hair on her head, I will hold you personally responsible."

Under normal circumstances Buffy would have told anyone that she was very able to take care of herself. She was the slayer, she needed no one´s protection, a lot of creatures indeed needed protecting from her. 

But even without Spike´s warning hand on her shoulder, Buffy knew that mentioning this right then and there was not a very good idea.

Selena took another step towards him, her voice low enough to be nothing more than a husky whisper.

" If any other unpleasant incidents occur during my stay in this house, Trollock, whatever the occasion…..I will rip your heart out. And believe me, Trollock , I will make sure that you are still alive when I serve it to you on a silver platter! Understood?"

The demon bowed so low, that he almost doubled over.

" Whatever the princess commands!"

Selena nodded slowly before she turned from him to Buffy.

" Excuse his behaviour, Buffy. I have made sure it shall never happen again!"

The ice had melted again, if it was illusion or real, Buffy couldn´t tell, but the fairy smiled warmly at her in a reassuring way. But underneath the beauty and self- control she could detect something else …..Selena was tired.

" You may go now…." She told Trollock, dismissing him with a wave of her hand.

" I will call you if I have found use for you…."

Trollock bowed again, moving away from the fairy and her companions, still he did not turn his back to the princess.

Selena had entered the hall again. Without turning around she called after the demon again.

" Trollock …." 

" Yes, your highness…."

" You may have lived in the sun kissed one´s realm for a long time now, but you are a creature of darkness and that is my domain. My cousin has no power in the shadows, never forget who you owe your allegiance too." 


	8. waiting

Disclaimer: Buffy and Spike and their world is the property of Joss Whedon and ME, I only borrow! 

The fairies are my creation ….( though Oberon and Titania  were of course created by the brilliant W. Shakespeare!)

Notes:  Thanks for the kind Feedback!! 

So far I have not seen a movie named " Troll" but thanks for mentioning it. I will try to get my hands on a copy of that movie.

As to how I came up with these characters and the plot ……as I said I was inspired by my holiday in Finland. I spent a wonderful summer with my friend in a small wooden house right on the edge of a giant lake in the middle of Finland. It was the most beautiful countryside we lived in. The country is so remote and quiet that I thought that ´s what fairy- land must look like! 

None of my characters are actually based on any kind of legend I have ever heard of, I have to admit that sadly, I know not very much about that

…shame on me!!

I based my idea of the Royal court of fairy on everything I´ve read about the French court of King Lois XIV( the famous sun-king) because I thought that a fairy court should be a place of splendour and beauty, but also a dangerous place filled with intrigue, rivalry and secrets. 

Hey …they are immortal after all…….they  have to get bored!

Also ….thanks for the tip about a book named " Kiss of shadows" ….checked it out on amazon.de  and it sounds interesting ( I already ordered it!).

WAITING

Walking through the giant mansion, Buffy had to remind herself to stop gaping. The house was grand, no doubt about it. 

Some demons obviously liked to lead a comfortable life!

Selena hardly seemed to notice the luxury surrounding her, but then again ….she was a princess, Buffy thought, seemed as though her royal highness was used to living this way.

The fairy walked straight into a gigantic living room complete with on open fire-place and lush leather-couches and armchairs. 

" So ……what now?" Buffy asked impatiently, still a little rattled by the little display of power Selena had put on out front.

" Do we make a plan how to ….."

Sighing the fairy sat down, shaking her head. She pressed one slender hand to her forehead and closed her eyes as though she was getting a migraine. 

For the first time since Buffy had met her, Selena looked almost human……tired and exhausted.

Liath sat down next to her. 

" You need to rest." 

" I will…." She looked up at him, smiling, and then her eyes wandered over to Buffy and Spike.

" Dawn is coming soon, I can feel it. Your vampire is no use to us during the daylight hours and even though Siobhan can withstand it, she does not like the sunlight. We all should rest during the day."

The banshee looked like she wanted to say something, but then thought the better of it.

" I have arranged for an audience at the lady Iolanthe so we can discuss the terms of Cay´s return." Liath added.

" Wait …." Buffy interrupted, " You said you had already discussed this with her and she had told you that she would not let him go!"

" I have sent a messenger, yes." Selena explained, still smiling mildly, but the fatigue was still there in her voice and her features.

" Then why ….."

" I told you, there is a code of conduct for this kind of thing, rules that I have to follow. I sent a messenger, she denied my request. Now I have to go to her personally and demand that she return to me what is not rightfully hers. If she does not …..I have every right to take any measures I deem necessary."

" And you are sure that this is no trap?" Spike asked suspiciously.

" That she won´t try anything once we all go to her, all she´d have to do is sit and wait for her prey like a bloody spider in her net!" 

" She can´t……." Len said quietly, leaning against the empty fire-place. His eyes glowed dimly, fixed on Selena.

" Even the Lady Iolanthe is honour bound by the laws of hospitality. We come to her in peace with a simple demand ….. she would not dare hurt is."

" What if she did?" Buffy shot a questioning gaze at the princess.

" Then her life is forfeit." Selena answered calmly.

" She is immortal……how…"

" There are worse things than death, Buffy Summers." The fairy told her, her voice eerie and cold.

It was as though an inaudible sigh went through her and the other fairies and for a moment there was a complete silence.

" My dear cousin is not the only one at the court who has mastered the art of cruelty. Immortality can be a far more severe punishment than death." 

The fairy´s eyes sought Buffy´s face, holding the slayer´s gaze for a long time. Buffy returned Selena´s look, feeling like she could loose herself in those deep, dark storm-eyes.

" Or how would you like to spend the rest of eternity as a mess of dismembered body parts,  locked in a box at the bottom of the sea where no one will find you, alone with yourself and your screams?" 

It wasn´t so much the picture  the fairy painted in Buffy´s mind that tore a gasp from her throat…. It was the fact that while she said it, Selena´s voice remained level, cool and detached with only a hint of resignation and bitterness, that told the slayer that it had been done before. 

There had been a small awkward pause, when Buffy and Spike had parted to enter their separate rooms. But Buffy had not been sure what to say, so she had just stared at each other for a couple of seconds.

As it turned out, Liath had come to L.A with very distinctive orders for Trollock, everything had been prepared. There had been pig´s blood in the fridge for the vampire, enough food to feed an army  and rooms prepared for everyone.

Buffy´s room had a balcony with a view of - what she suspected to be the garden- even though it looked more like a park, complete with a labyrinth and  the obligatory swimming pool.

There was a vase filled with white roses on her nightstand, the flowers filled the room with their sweet scent. She could almost forget that she had been blackmailed to come here and pretend that this was nothing more than a holiday……..almost, but not quite.

Even though the king-size bed was very comfortable, Buffy could not sleep for more than a few hours. 

In search of the bathroom Buffy had passed by  a half open door. She had meant to just take a peek in order to find out what kind of room it was…….

Buffy stopped dead in her tracks to stare at the scene that seemed to have sprung right out of an old painting. Selena was sleeping in a giant four-poster bed, her multi-coloured hair spread on the white linen of the blanket, a shimmering mass of copper, bronze, brown and red in hundreds of different shades.

 Sleeping, she looked so very young, not at all threatening or powerful, but frail and vulnerable, like a precious, dainty china-doll. One of her slender hands was curled under her cheek as she slept, a gesture so very childlike and endearing that it almost broke the slayer´s heart.

Curled up at her feet in a ball of silver fur lay Len in his wolf-form, his snout resting atop of Selena´s knee. He had not moved, but simply opened his amber- eyes to look at Buffy.

He uttered a tiny, almost inaudible mewl and Buffy moved on, not sure what to think.

Around noon the slayer found herself roaming the gigantic mansion in an attempt to remember where the kitchen was. She could do with a sandwich right about now and maybe ……just a short dip in the pool?  

It was there after all and she had hours of doing nothing and waiting in front of her. She might as well make the best of it! 

There should be an upside to being blackmailed by a fairy- princess, shouldn´t there…… Buffy reasoned with herself.

She should be entitled to some sort of compensation ……a few hours of sunbathing and swimming in a private, marvellous pool should suffice …….

The kitchen was gigantic, pretty much like everything in Trollock´s house, but then again, Buffy figured if one was as gargantuan as the demon, these proportions seemed probably just about right….

Several doors of the kitchen´s glass- front lead out onto a terrace overlooking the garden.

Through the glass Buffy could see Liath sitting in a patio-chair. As though Selena´s cousin had felt her surprised look, he turned to look over his shoulder and waved her over.

Well, the sandwich could wait a few minutes, she guessed.

The white haired fairy was sitting in the sun, eating strawberries.

He met Buffy´s questioning gaze with his arctic blue eyes, his eyebrows arched in what seemed to be amusement.

" Selena is still sleeping." Buffy told him in lack of anything else to say, sitting down on the chair next to him. The view of the garden was simply breathtaking.

Liath gave her wry smile.

" What a pretty picture they make, don´t you think? The princess and her wolf……"

He held the bowl of strawberries out to her, stressing the offer with a nod.

" It´s not what you might think." He added solemnly.

Buffy took a few, gingerly holding the fruits in her hand. They tasted even better than they looked. Sweet and juicy and warm….

" They won´t even let her sleep alone, her bodyguards. Don´t know how she managed to leave the rest of them behind …there´s eleven of them still at the palace. Cay selected them personally, every last one of them …..they adore her. They drive her crazy most of the time, won´t let her do anything by herself, but then again she never listens anyway….." 

Liath chuckled to himself, offering Buffy the berries again.

For a while they just sat there in silence, enjoying the sunshine. Liath let her have the last strawberry, before he put the bowl on a table nearby.

The tall, slender fairy tugged a strand of snow-white hair behind his pointy ear and turned towards the slayer with a serious expression on his handsome face. He didn´t look as young as his cousin did. In fact Liath did not seem young at all; his features had a more ageless quality to them. But his slightly almond shaped eyes were ancient, Buffy could see that. They were like ice-splinters in his perfectly handsome face.

" You don´t approve of how she handles things .."  

Buffy felt like she needed to say something to contradict him, even though in a way he was right. She sure as hell didn´t approve of being blackmailed!

Buffy opened her mouth, but couldn´t find anything to say. Liath smiled wryly at her again, lifting one hand in a soothing gesture.

" That´s ok! Neither do I …if it were up to me we´d just barge into Io´s impossibly decadent place with a whole army of demons and monsters and simply demand that she free Cay immediately."

Buffy stared at him in absolute amazement.

" I thought you had codes of conduct for this kind of thing!"

" We do ….." he grinned maliciously. " …but I´d say to hell with them! Selena is the princess, she could do whatever she pleases. Oberon would probably let it slide by …..he has four sons, but only one daughter! He loves her dearly. If Io came to complain, he´d most likely tell her to shut up and  get a new toy to play with!"

Buffy swallowed hard.

" So this is all superfluous? What am I here for then? I did not exactly volunteer for this, you know!"

" I know!" He was still grinning.

"  It´s not up to me …..Oberon would not punish his daughter. He´d be disappointed in her for a while, but he´d get over it …….but in the end that is not the point. It´s not my decision …..Selena does thinks by the book, Oberon taught her well………she´s got principles…..scruples, you might say."

" I am here because the princess has scruples?" Buffy asked incredulously.

" She resides in a demon´s house, she blackmailed me , she orders Spike and Siobhan around …..what scruples? I don´t see the difference!"

Liath snickered as though she had said something incredibly amusing.

" Yes …you do slayer, that´s one of the reasons you are here!"

" Why is she doing this to herself and to us, if she could do things the easy way?"

" Do you always take the easy way out, Buffy Summers? I don´t like it , but that is just who Selena is …..the princess Amoret Indajaan, Stormborn of the royal court of fairy. She thinks that if royalty decrees rules that others have to live and die by ….. then so does royalty."

" How can you expect other creatures to abide by your rules and laws if you are not willing to respect these boundaries yourself?"

They both turned to find Siobhan standing in the kitchen, just far off enough to be out of the sun. The banshee´s voice carried far enough. She was not trying to pass as human anymore. The colour had drained from  her hair and skin, leaving it grey like ash. Her eyes were two deep, black pools in what was still a hauntingly beautiful face.

" Selena has never been weak. I serve her not just because she has power over my kind, but because I respect her for who she is. She is not like others I have known. The princess would never order you to do the dirty work for her, slayer. She would never ask you to do anything that she would not do herself. If she wants somebody dead, she´ll not have them killed. She´ll go for the kill herself."

Siobhan yawned, holding one hand over her eyes to shield them from the sunlight.

" It is still day …I´ll go back to bed!"

Liath and Buffy watched her shuffle out of the kitchen, like a child that had risen to early.

Buffy had to admit that the banshee´s words had reassured her a little. It was good to know that the princess did not mind getting her hands dirty.

Then something Liath had said come back to the slayer. She turned her head to look at the male fairy, taking him all in.

" What is it?"

" They make a pretty picture…." Buffy answered slowly, her eyes searching Liath´s face.

" …the princess and Len, a very cuddly picture ……does that bother you?" 

Buffy could not help wonder if Liath was the other man Selena had talked about, the other man the fairy princess loved.

The lord of snow returned her look for a moment, obviously not comprehending what Buffy was insinuating. She could see confusion wash over his face before he threw his head back and started laughing loudly. 

" Oh …slayer! You got it all wrong. I love my cousin, but for all it´s worth, she is as dear as a sister to me! And Len ……" he had to interrupt himself because he could not stop laughing.

" …..Len, …..Len had his heart broken into pieces so small that all the king´s men could not put it back together again! He has given up on love a long, long time ago! Sleeping in Selena´s bed to protect her is as far as that will ever go!"

He calmed down a little, looking at Buffy again. There was nothing but sincerity in his eyes.

" Len will never trust a woman with his heart again. The last time he did, a bunch of villagers almost burned him at the stake and the human witch he loved so desperately cursed him. He has not always been a shapeshifter, my dear, though I might add that he turned that curse into his advantage."

He turned his gaze towards the garden, his face unreadable

" For most of us slayer, love is not as it should be …….for most of us it has become a cross to bear." 

She said ….we are royalty, we make rules that we decree other´s to live by …..how can we expect other´s to respect laws and rules, if we don´t respect these boundaries ourselves? 

Aristocracy has no right to reign, if we don´t live by the rules we apply to others.

She´d never expect anyone to do the dirty work for her …..she would never ask you to do anything that she would not do herself ……

If she wants somebody dead, she´ll not send an assassin …..she´ll go for the kill herself.

She´s afraid of becoming one of those monsters herself.

It´s just as hard for her as it is for you


	9. Fear

DISCLAIMER: Buffy and the Scoobies belong to Mutant Enemy and Joss Whedon! Selena and her folks belong to me…

Notes: Thanks for the feedback! Hope you still like this …..Next Chapter will have more action as we move to meet the infamous Iolanthe!!

Hope you´re still with me!

FEAR

Buffy shook her head violently. It felt as though somebody had just opened her head and pored all these strange thoughts into her brain. It was not more than a fleeting glance, like hearing parts of a conversation from another room.

It is just as hard for her as it is for you……

If she wants somebody dead ….

Like cold fingers thrumming on her brain.

" Stop it ….." she whispered, squeezing her eyes together. It was Liath´s voice in her head, bits and pieces of his thoughts.

He turned towards her with a worried, ashamed expression.

" Oh ..forgive me , it was careless of me." 

He gave her an apologetic smile.

" Sometimes my thoughts wander away from me …..I usually don´t allow them to wander into somebody else´s mind."

Buffy pressed one hand to her forehead, squinting at the white haired fairy in utter confusion. Whatever just happened, it had felt like an ice-cold wind blowing through her head.

So these fragments had been Liath´s thoughts. She had figured as much.

Suddenly the sun on her skin did not feel as warm and comforting as it had just moments ago.

Against her will she had to remember Spike´s warning about dealing with fairys ……..he had been right so far. Every time she thought she had adjusted to the circumstances something new, even more unsettling came up….

She thought about it for a moment. 

" What do you mean ……..it is just as hard for her as it is for me?"

Liath looked her in the eyes, arching one dark eyebrow.

She knew that those had been his thoughts, they had not been meant for her ….but now that she heard them, Buffy wanted to know all of it.

She wanted the truth…..she needed the truth. She did not like being kept in the dark.

A lazy smile crept to Liath´s lips. To Buffy it looked self- deprecating and just a little sad.

" You and my cousin have more in common than you might think Buffy Summers. You may not see it now, but it is so.."

The lord of snow leaned back in his chair, folding his elegant, cold hands in his lap.

" The world you live in has made both of you what you are today. You have both paid a price ……"

Great …more mystery talk …just what she needed now! This was almost like talking to the freakin´council!

Buffy gave Liath a disgruntled, impatient look.

" Either answer my question or don´t, okay? But don't go on hinting at this or that because I am tired of games!" 

The fairy nodded, his face for once grave and serious.

" The royal court of fairy is just like any other court, slayer. Any human court of old, take your pick ……ancient Egypt, Troy, Rome, England, France…… What it comes down to is that even though most of us are immortal, we are not that different from humans. We know love, hate, anger, sadness, joy…. jealousy…evidently.

The royal court is a viper's nest." 

He pursed his lips in distaste as his eyes roamed over the lush garden in front of them.

" Selena told you about Io´s …..shall we say appetites?"

Buffy furrowed her brow, nodding absent minded. Somehow she suspected that now that she had asked for it, she would be hearing some things that – after further consideration- she would prefer to have no knowledge of.

" To live forever can be a gift, but it can be a burden or a curse too. The fairy court´s golden child is not the only one whose interest have gone ….astray..

…over the years. They are like diamonds …..made for eternity, striking in their splendour, shining and bright , the most beautiful monsters you can even imagine. Selena has seen it , lived it for so long after loosing her heart. Now …I fear …my fair cousin is afraid to become one of those monsters herself. She never told me this, but I can see that she fears to wake up one day ……and realize that there is nothing left that can warm her heart."

Buffy stared at him, as understanding finally hit her.

It was not just Selena´s pride or her anger at her cousin that drove her to do all this. It was not her sense of duty ……

Just like Buffy she had built her own little haven in all the madness around her. 

Just like she herself had Xander, Giles, Willow, Spike and Dawn ….her own, weird little version of a – albeit at times dysfunctional- family, so had Selena ….

Buffy could not even imagine what it meant to live forever, most creatures she and the scoobies had encountered so far could be killed in one way or another. No matter how overwhelmingly powerful the opponent had been; the master, Adam, Glory , …the first ……sooner or later they had found some weakness, some chink in their armour ……everything could be killed. 

Not even vampires were truly immortal …..actually they were a pretty easy kill.

To live eternally, to be a princess at the royal court of fairy, to live through her grief and maintain whatever equalled " humanity" in fairy terms, Selena had surrounded herself with a family of her own making…..her guards. 

And like Buffy, Selena would fight, bleed and kill to protect this family from falling apart, from being destroyed. 

…..I will not stand by and watch him being destroyed by the cruelty of my own kin ……that was what she had said.

Buffy smiled slightly. This was something she could understand. It did not change that Selena had blackmailed her and threatened Spike…….Buffy knew, but at least now she was a little closer to understanding how the fairy´s mind worked. She understood her reasons.

" So Cay is in love with Selena?" Buffy tried to make the question sound casual, but she could tell from Liath´s mocking glance that she did not really succeed.

The lord of snow chuckled for a moment.

" Oh I wish it were this easy! But then again, love never is right? To say that  Cay is in love with my stormborn cousin is like saying that a fish is in love with 

 the sea. My friend is not just in love with Selena……….he has loved her his whole life."

" She seems to know that."

Liath frowned, trying not to laugh.

" Oh …..of course she does know, everybody at court knows…….still he never acted on it. Oh no, not my noble friend Cay! He stood by as she met Evarion, stood by her when his leaving almost tore her apart…….not for one moment did he even dream of making any kind of advances on her. Watching over her, keeping her safe was all he ever did."

Liath´s lips curved upward in a bitter, cheerless smile.

" I love him like a brother, but my best friend is a fool. Whatever incentive Selena could have given him…letting him know that her heart might change one day….it never changed a thing. He remained righteous, dignified and honourable, distant …..never wavering ….." 

He leaned forward, searching the slayer´s face with interest.

" Why did you ask?"

Buffy shrugged, returning his gaze with the same interest she saw in his cold, ice blue eyes.

" You said love had become a cross to bear ……"

He laughed, as though the joke was on him. His laughter sounded even more bitter than Selena´s had before …..like the breaking of ice, a sound almost hurtful.

" Oh ….it has indeed…….but just this time…..I was referring to myself."

Buffy could feel her eyes narrowing, but the lord of snow never flinched from her questioning gaze. His face had become empty and blank, just like that of his cousin before.

An image shot through her mind, the memory of Liath and the red haired woman, the way his hand had hovered just above her smooth, white skin……and for a split second she could see his features contort with a longing so intense that it took Buffy´s breath away.

Sian, lady of fire, ……..the living flame …

" Oh….."  Buffy breathed in sudden understanding. 

Liath got to his feet in one gracefully liquid movement, looking out over the garden again. He gave Buffy another wry smile that implied that he was mocking himself more than her.

" Right, Mrs. Summers …….another horribly ironic fairy love-story that will never lead anywhere …in love with the only woman in this world or the summer- lands that I cannot touch."

He took a pair of sunglasses out of his breast-pocket and put them on.

" Such a beautiful day ….you should take a dip in the pool!"


	10. Echo

Disclaimer: Don´t own Buffy or Spike, it´s all Joss Whedon´s genius!!!!

NOTES: OK …ifirst I´m really sorry it took me so very long! I just can´t get anything done and I apologize! 

Thanks to all of you for your very kind reviews! It really makes me sit down and write more!! 

Special thanks to organized chaos and Keep the Faith! You two really rock and it makes me very, very proud that you like my stuff! THANK YOU!!!!

I know I promised to introduce Iolanthe in this chapter, but it seemed wrong to do so after the last sentence! I will hurry up with the next chapter and there she´ll be! I just needed to get some thoughts and notions in in this little ditty…… Hope you still enjoy!!

ECHO

„ And where the bloody  hell might you be coming from?"

Siobhan looked up to find Spike leaning against the door of his room, half shrouded in the darkness. They had not bothered to switch on the lights in the long corridor. 

They didn´t need light to see.

The banshee shifted her head sideways to look around. They were alone.

" I ….nothing really." She finally answered timidly, rubbing her eyes like a tired child.

Spike gave her a quick once over look, noticing that she was wearing pyjama- pants that were far too wide and bulky for her delicate form.

Her black eyes met his. 

" If you are looking for the slayer, she´s on the terrace soaking up some of that sun that would surely burn you to a cinder, having a little heart to heart with the lord of snow."

Her words were meant to burn, but it seemed as though there was no malice in her voice, only something resembling defeat. 

Spike pursed his lips in surprise. 

" Too tired to even insult me, pet?"

Siobhan gave him a weak grin.

" We both know that you are the only one who can make stating the obvious insulting. It drove Angelus quite mad if I recall correctly."

That thought never failed to make Spike grin wickedly. Yeah …..peaches had hated that.

Siobhan stepped closer.

" She is a special one…..that girl, if she can make both you and him fall in love with her so ……. Take it from someone who knows; be careful William."

Siobhan stepped even closer to him, leaning her forehead onto his chest for a moment.

Spike just stood there, transfixed, staring down at her silvery white hair and those tiny shoulders.

She was even smaller than Buffy.

" Love .."

 Siobhan said it so very quietly that for a moment Spike was not sure if she had spoken at all. But then the Banshee stepped back from him, lifting her head to look him into the eyes.

" Love is so very powerful, William.We both know that it can give us wings, but it can just as easily break us. Love does not just create, it also destroys. Look around you, do you think that right now there is even one creature in this house who has not been branded by its power?"

Siobhan hugged herself tightly, as though she was cold.

"It has destroyed me and I let it happen. I brought this over myself, I know that all too well.I let it destroy me, just as Len let himself almost be destroyed.  And one day it will destroy the lord of snow too."

Spike stepped back a little further to look into her upturned face, so innocent and angelic and yet frightening in the half- shadow of the corridor. 

The human camouflage was gone. She had abandoned it along the way, just like one would step out of a fancy dress and leave it on the floor. Now her appearance had that distinct otherworldliness that had lured many a lonesome traveller from their path……

" What do you mean?"

Siobhan rolled her eyes, her grey fingers raking through her silvery hair.

" Oh please!" she said impatiently, " The slayer saw it……you had to see it too. Don´t tell me you don´t get it! Fire and ice? The living flame and the lord of snow?"

She leaned in, her voice low and husky.

" You know exactly what I´m talking about, so don´t pretend with me ….you have to know! William the Bloody in love with the slayer …….it´s pretty much the same thing!"

" Getting bored here, Siobhan!" Spike returned with irritation.

" I think I´ve had about all the lectures I can tolerate!"

" Temptation …clear and simple. For you it´s the slayer, for Liath it is the one thing that might end him …..fire….the contrary element! Have you ever touched him? He´s even colder than you are….."

" Hey!"

" And Sian is pure heat and he longs for that fire, longs for what the one thing he cannot feel, the thing he can not touch. Desire, love …it´s like a desperate yearning, like hunger or thirst……you know it! And the temptation is imminent. One day the lord of snow will try to quench that thirst, put an end to the yearning ……and the only question which remains is this: Will the cold suffocate the flame and extinguish the fire, or will Sian´s heat melt the ice and consume all that he is?It really does not matter, for  it will be the end of both of them!"

" So what are you saying?"

" He is a liability! We need to be careful, William! Love ….is a liability!

Not even the princess can escape it. That´s the reason I serve her, so that …maybe …at least this will come to a good end."

She shook her head, looking at Spike with glittering, dark eyes.

" You love the slayer…I know that. And she feels for you too, you are in her heart, William.

Don´t let it destroy her …or you."

It was the voices that drew her in.  Buffy knew that and yet she followed the bittersweet song through the mansion, up the stairs.

Somewhere in time, I know

Darling, you´ll come back to me 

Roses will bloom again 

Spring feels like eternity

She had dozed off in the sun-chair. Only later the slayer had noticed that someone had positioned a sun-shade  in front of her, so that she didn´t get a sunburn. 

A cool wind had woken her up. 

She was almost embarrassed to realize that it was late afternoon already. Neither Liath nor any of the other fairies were anywhere to be seen. She was alone.

Just as she had made up her mind to find Spike, the singing had started. 

Two sweet, female voices singing a duet………voices too beautiful and clear to be true…..unnatural voices.

In your kiss

It wasn´t goodbye

You are still the reason why 

I can hear you whispering in the silence of my room

My heart still surrenders like the sun to the moon

I can barely stand this aching burning endlessly

Love me now ; forever

Where the last words you said to me

Buffy followed the singing up the stairs and down the corridor to a half- opened door.

Selena´s room……

The princess was sitting at the window, looking out while the banshee was busy combing her shining, multi- coloured hair.

They did not seem to detect Buffy´s presence; at least they gave no sign of it, if they did.

Just staring at the picture in front of her made Buffy wonder if this was yet another of the fairy´s manoeuvres to manipulate her …or if it was indeed a random coincidence.

Still …she stood there, staring at the two of them, listening to their mesmerizing voices.

And when the morning comes

My hands still reach out for you

Some things we´ll never say

There is nothing I can do

I can barely get through the day

Since the day you went away

"Buffy!" The low whisper sent shivers up her spine, low and hoarse and with an unmistakable accent.

She turned her head to find Spike standing in the doorway of his room, motioning her to follow him as he turned away. 

I can hear your whisper in the silence of my room 

My heart still surrenders like the sun to the moon

I can barely stand this aching burning endlessly 

Love me now forever

Where your last words to me

He closed the door behind her, before he turned his attention back to the slayer. 

Buffy felt her hands curl into fists. The impulse to just cross the distance between them and walk right into his arms was overbearingly strong.

In the shadows of the room his face, half shrouded in darkness, was incredibly handsome. 

He was still wearing the dark jeans he had worn the night before, but he had changed into a new grey shirt, more formfitting than the black one.

She knew that the body underneath that shirt was hard and cold, like polished white marble. She did not mind the cold anymore. It had troubled her at first, now that cold meant comfort to her.

And right now ….she longed for that comfort …….she wanted to be held by those cold, strong arms. And yet she could not bring herself to take that step. 

Instead she hugged her arms around herself as though she felt chilly. 

When will you find your way across the endless sea? 

With starlight above to guide you to me 

Waves crashing on distant shores 

They are calling our names forever more

Spike furrowed his brow.

" You alright, pet? You look a little edgy."

" Yeah …just a little shaken up, you know…….it´s nothing!"

She looked up, right into his incredibly blue eyes. Sometimes – even when they had still been enemies- she was sure that those eyes saw right through her.

" I think I get it now…." She told him quietly.

" What?"

" What you told me before, how they are not like us ….you were right. I get it now, the whole glamour thing. You said that Selena is toning it down for my benefit and that may be true, but…"

" Go on…"

" I think she is still using it, not against you or Siobhan, because she doesn´t need to, but in a way she is still using it to influence me. She´s not making herself seem more beautiful or impressive than she really is. I think it´s the opposite, she is using it to make herself appear more human. I mean …just listen to them singing ……Siobhan was right, no mortal has a voice like that."

And I can hear your whisper in the silence of my room

My heart still surrenders, like the sun to the moon

And I can barely stand this aching, burning endlessly

Love me now 

Forever

Where the last words you said to me…

There was a moment of silence between them as they both listened to the song. When it ended  Buffy was only too aware that it was a love-song. The power of  two preternatural voices meeting in the end of the song made her shiver, almost choke. The sadness seemed to have gone straight to her heart.

Spike tried to banish the worried expression from his face, assuming a neutral look. On the one hand he as relieved that Buffy was seeing the whole fairy lot with more suspicion, on the other hand he could still see the pull of their attraction that even his slayer couldn´t shake completely.

He could see the conflicting emotions playing over her face. No matter how much that girl tried to be guarded about her feelings, they were usually written on her face in red ink.

" Somehow I don´t think it´s just me she´s trying to deceive….."

" No use in playing me and the banshee, pet. Who else is there?"

Buffy averted her gaze, still fighting the urge to just move over and touch him. She could almost feel the cold, smooth skin under her fingers…..but she didn´t. She couldn´t just run to him every time she felt like it ….every time it suited her needs.

He loved her, he had said it a thousand times ….all she had ever done was use him…..and now she couldn´t tell anymore if what she wanted was wrong or right.

He had sacrificed so much already, he deserved better …..

She squeezed her eyes shut, shaking her head.

" Herself, I think she is trying trying to persuade herself that she is not all that scary, that there are things that she is not capable of."

Buffy looked up, straight into the vampire´s eyes.

"What do you think?"

Spike shrugged.

" I can´t tell with them, love. Never could. But I think that she really wants this Cay back and she´ll do what she has to in order to make that happen."

Buffy nodded. She hated to admit it, but it made sense to her. It was even something that she could understand and relate to. 

If it were her …….but it was her, she realised suddenly. 

She had come here to protect Spike, to make sure that Selena wouldn´t take him from her.

The thought of never seeing him again, never bantering with him again…….never being able to just reach out her hand and touch him. The thought made her so sick to her stomach that she couldn´t even breathe. 

She needed him. Sometimes she wanted to be close to him so much that it hurt.

And still she couldn´t bring herself to tell him.

Spike´s brows knit together as he watched the apparent change in her facial expression.

" What is it, love?"

Buffy put one hand over her mouth, returning Spike´s inquisitive gaze.

Now, finally she understood. She couldn´t say why she hadn´t seen it before, but now that she did….

" I get it now, Spike. I really think I do, what she is doing, why she is doing it. Liath said we were not that different she and I and he is right."

" Are you sure you´re alright, pet?" Spike asked, carefully touching her arm.

Buffy smiled sadly, covering his hand with hers. 

" I get it now, if it were me ……I´d do the same thing. If I was in her place, I´d move heaven and earth to get back what was taken from me…..no matter what the cost."


	11. Glimmer

Disclaimer: All belongs to Joss, except the fairies who are mine ….

Notes: SOOO Sorry to keep you waiting. Had to write the DAMN exam, but am done no …so more soon! Hope you enjoy …Than k you all sooo much for the good wishes an d the patience and the lovely feedback!!!!!

Glimmer

„ Oh my …" . 

It was all Buffy could say in order to not gape as Selena stepped out of her room. Selena was dressed to go to town on her cousin, a modern version of a gloomy fairy-tale princess. She wore a midnight blue gown. Every step made the billowing skirts rustle, hinting at several layers of black taffeta underneath the shiny, soft material of the dress. The upper part consisted of a tied up bodice, riding low on her hips. Black velvet ribbons were used to lace the bodice up and hold it together, but the ribbons were tied loosely enough to show off more than just the deep plunging neckline and the prefect skin of Selena´s cleavage. A fine line of white, almost iridescent skin shimmered through the velvet ribbons every time the princess moved. Her hair was arranged in a neat pile of shining colours atop her head, elaborate tresses framing her face. There was no tiara, in her hair, only little silver combs holding it all together. Buffy realised that a part of her had almost expected to see her wearing a little crown, the little girl inside her, that had loved to play princess when she was young. The only jewellery Selena wore was a wide silver-collar around her neck, studded with sapphires of different shapes and sizes. The blue fire of the jewels reflected the colour of the fairy´s stormy eyes. 

She could feel Spike falling to his knees behind her, could see Siobhan kneeling in Selena´s room, hairbrush still in hand.

She could hear Len´s sharp intake of breath next to her, as he bowed deeply. She saw  the wicked smile on Liath´s lips, hovering somewhere between malignant  anticipation and satisfaction. The lord of snow bowed curtly, extending his hand towards Selena at the same time. 

" You shine, princess of mine …..how you shine….." His whisper was like a caress sliding across the room. Selena smiled, her storm- grey eyes meeting Buffy´s gaze and for just one moment the glamour fell. The slayer took two steps backwards before she even realised what she was doing.  The impact of seeing the fairy in all her glory was close to fearsome.

She doesn´t need a crown, Buffy understood, for right there, right then…..Selena was royalty. She was regal and majestic and everything that should imply. Selena was power, raw, unbridled, primal, a thing of legend and myth. She was a fairy, Oberon´s daughter……a bedazzling, startling, magnificent thing to behold, frightening in her beauty and grace ……and far from  human.

Selena smiled at her still, giving her a small nod as though they had come to an understanding. She did not seem to mind that Buffy would not kneel or curtsy for her. 

" You are the slayer….", Buffy could hear Selena´s breathy voice blowing through her head like a cool breeze.

 " You are the chosen one, Buffy Summers. The one slayer who started to walk in this world… in a manner unlike all the ones who came before you. You are the one that prevailed. Your power is as primal as mine, a living thing. You are the slayer …..you will never have to stoop before me."

Then the princess took Liath´s outstretched hand and everything fell back to place. It was as though time started to move forward again, the glamour was back in place.

Spike got back to his feet, his eyes never leaving Buffy. Something had just happened. He had felt the building, the exchange of power like on electric current flowing over his skin. A look at Siobhan´s  pretty face told him that the banshee had felt it too.

" You alright, pet?" he whispered.

Buffy tore her eyes away from the fairy, fixing Spike with a confused stare until she shook her head.

" Yeah …..fine!"

She rubbed her hands over her arms as though she felt cold.

" I didn´t know we were supposed to get all dressed up…." She gave him a weak smile. She had simply put a pair of black suede leather- pants and a tight, black sweater. It looked great, but in no way comparable to Selena´s stunning appearance.

 In his eyes she could read it was enough……for him it would always be enough. Suddenly the urge to touch him was almost unbearable. Buffy stepped forward, taking a hold of his hand. The skin was smooth and cold, she could feel the strength in those fingers as they squeezed hers tightly before he let go.

Selena laughed softly, the sound of a gurgling well Buffy had become accustomed to, but underneath the laughter Buffy could still sense Selena´s concern. 

" Do not worry. It was not required for you or the others. I asked for an audience with the most vain and narcissistic woman I have ever known. Io needs to see that I have not  her realm to beg but to demand."

" We are putting up a little show…." Liath said still grinning in a way that made Buffy uncomfortable for some reason. He was dressed in a modern designer suit that Buffy would have guessed to be Armani. 

" Doesn´t hurt to remind her that you are the princess after all, ha?"

She lifted her eyebrows in doubt.

" Will it help us?"

Selena´s ethereal features were blank and empty again, her voice neutral as she answered Buffy´s question.

" I don´t think it will, but it does not hurt to try. Io has forgotten many things since she left the royal court, manner and restraint are just two of them. She might not return Cay to me, but you are right, Buffy. She needs to remember that I indeed am the princess."

 This time Selena did not travel magically with them. A dark, posh limousine complete with chauffeur took them straight through downtown L.A to a premise outside the city. The site was surrounded by giant, green hedges. As they drove through the tall iron gate, Buffy could see that hedges belonged to an elaborate labyrinth which  looked like it took up half of the lush, green garden. 

The slayer crossed her arms in front of her chest and scowled. Those fairies truly liked to live in style …..it was almost too clichéd to be true. The house itself was even grander than the one Selena used while she was in town. It was an impressive three- story mansion with white walls columns. Two armed guards awaited them in front of the huge wooden doors. Liath chuckled under his breath as he helped his cousin out of the car. 

" Vainity……it´s all pure vanity. She could never resist making a spectacle …."

Buffy got out after Selena, checking the surroundings. She looked at the giant doors, the wood decorated by an intricate design, then her eyes wandered to Spike. 

" This is almost like some nightmare version of  The Bold and the Beautiful"; Great houses, Great cars, intrigue….."

" And we´re right in the middle of it, pet!" 

Out of the blue he leaned down to her, his hand sliding down the side of her neck. He brought his face right next to hers, close enough that they almost touched. If Buffy just turned her head to her side ever so slightly, her cheek would touch is. Spike drew an unneeded breath.

" Please,  Buffy, whatever happens …..try to hold your temper in check. If things get nasty in there ….."

She swallowed hard moving back a little to look into his bright blue eyes. Having him so close made her heartbeat quicken.

" I don´t need you to lecture me now, Spike."

She knew he meant to protect her and the thought appealed to her, but it annoyed her too. He of all people should know that she could handle herself …..

" Slayer….."

" It´s ok, Spike. I´m not afraid!"

She could see his lips being pressed together until they were nothing more than a thin , white line. Spike took a steadying breath, his free hand balling into a fist. His other hand was still touching her neck ever so lightly, like a butterfly's touch.

" I know …..that´s the problem, pet. You´ve dealt with beasties before ….but this is different." 

He withdrew himself slowly, eyes never leaving her face. Buffy´s eyes fell on Siobhan who stood next to them, obviously aware of their little exchange.

The banshee just nodded in Buffy´s direction. 

Selena straightened herself, taking Liath´s hand once more as the approached the door. Buffy realised that the four of them…Len, Siobhan Spike and herself were fanned out behind them like some kind of honour guard. Liath and Selena looked as though they were going to a ball, her hand resting in his, arms outstretched like he was leading her on the dance-floor. The doors swung open and a tall, blond man stepped into their way. 

" Who may I present?"

The lord of snows face was serious, almost arrogant as he took a step forward. Buffy had seen it before in Selena …..Witnessed all the other feeling draining away from their features until only a detached mask remained.

" Her ladyship  Selena Amoret Indajaan, stormborn of the fairy- court, princess of the ancient blood, keeper of the dusk and twilight, lady of the shadows, here to see the Lady Iolanthe Miriamel, the sun-kissed one of the fairy-court, lady of the morning–dew……"

He stopped in the middle of his sentence, his face blank, as though he had suddenly grown bored of rattling off her other titles too.

The blond man stared at him for a moment, waiting. When he realised that Liath had no intention of continuing, he pursed his lip and sunk into a deep bow.

" Your majesty …..the golden one is delighted to see you again and surprised to find her in your realm. If you will follow me ….."

His eyes roamed over them all before he turned around, leading them down a marble stairway.

Selena turned her head to look over her shoulder to Buffy.

" And now, Buffy Summers you will meet my infamous cousin…..I hope you like suprises."


	12. Facing Up

NOTES: THANKS TO ALL WHO REVIEWED and waited so long for me to update this! I am truly sorry, but I was sufferung from a real writer´s block for several stories of mine and just couldn´t get anything done! Hope anyone out there is still interested! I will try to update soon again! SORRY!

DISCLAIMER: the Fairies are mone, all else belongs to joss!

**Facing up **

The blond man led them through a house that was both all that Buffy had imagined it to be - and more. Thick Persian rugs covered, white, grey, black and even red marble floors, gigantic gold-rimmed mirrors covered the walls, but the most fascinating thing was the plants and flowers. The inside walls of many rooms were covered in ivy and different kind of vines, crawling up the walls, framing the mirrors and windows. The potted plants sprouted blossoms bigger than any the slayer had ever seen- some bigger than dinner plates. Selenadid not seem the least bit impressed, her face as arrogant and cold as Buffy had ever seen it. Siobhan, who caught Buffy's amazed look at the surroundings, gave her a warning glance.

"Don't be impressed with this ….the lady of the morning dew can make anything grow from a drop of water and a grain of sand."

"Yes …but she can also make it wither and die." Len whispered tonelessly, his amber eyes scanning the room.

The flowers made the air heavy with their scent. Then a pair of gilded wooden doors swung open, leading them into what would pass for a dressing room, had the room not been big enough to fit the entire Summer's house.

Selena´s infamous cousin was seated with her back to the room in front of a mirrored dresser while the tiny winged fairies, about the size of dragon flies, were busy arranging her hair. She did not turn to greet them, but Buffy could see her reflection in the mirror. She was watching them with a smile. If Selena was a stormy autumn's night, then Iolanthe resembled a glorious summer morning. If Selena was moonlight and shadow, Iolanthe was honey and sunrays.

Even though she was seated it was obvious that she had the tall willowy figure which fashion designers favoured for their models; every sensuous curve of her body flawless under taut skin that seemed to be dusted with a shimmer of bronze. Her eyes had the colour of simmering gold, her hair the colour of ripe wheat and dark honey.

"No surprise there…" Buffy thought to herself. "…they obviously don't call her the golden child for nothing."

She was a contrast to Selena´s kind of beauty in every way possible.

"Greetings Princess Amoret, my dear cousin. It is so good to see you after this long time of absence from the royal court. Do you bring me the latest gossip?"

Her voice was soft, almost childlike, but with a deeper undercurrent. The way she talked, told Buffy that the sweet tone reminiscent of singing birds could drop to the low, hoarse purring of a schooled seductress.

She turned to look at Spike. The vampire lifted an eyebrow at her and shrugged.

"Greetings Lady Iolanthe." Selena answered meeting her cousin's eyes in the mirror. "I do think you know that gossip is not what I came here for….."

Iolanthe smiled at her mirror again, still unmoving so that the dragonfly- fairies could continue to braid her hair and pile tresses atop her queenly head in an intricate design.

"Why ever else would you come, dear cousin?"

Buffy let her eyes wander around the room, silently taking a headcount of the bodyguards that stood at their back and in front of the windows. There were six of them and as far as the slayer could tell, they all looked as though they were related, each one a carbon copy of the man who had led them into the room and was know lounging in an armchair to Iolanthe´s left.

"To demand what is mine …" Selena returned, her even, polite voice laced with an unmistakable trace of challenge.

In the mirror, Iolanthe´s eyes met Selena´s as her lips curved upward in another pleasant smile, though Buffy noticed that the sentiment did not reach her eyes. It was as though her muscles knew all the right movements, her face knew how to display certain emotions …but that was just it, a display…..no matter what her face showed, her eyes remained untouched by feeling.

"I do not understand, cousin." She said with a little laugh. "I do not remember borrowing a dress or trinket or any such thing from you. Nothing that would justify you visiting my house with this kind of …entourage."

The tiny fairies had completed their task and were now busy with fastening glittering, gem studded hair needles in Iolanthe´s hair. In the mirror, Buffy could see her eyes narrowing slightly as she took them all in.

"A banshee, a vampire and …the slayer even." Iolanthe said softly, like she was talking about something as benign as the weather. "You always kept….such interesting company." Her smile grew wider and a hint more seductive as her eyes settled on Liath.

"And you ….my lord of snow. What would bring you here into the sunny regions? Have you missed me, my love? Are you finally longing for the warmth?"

It took a moment for Buffy to understand the insinuation and it stunned her. She turned her head slightly to look at Spike, but the vampire seemed as surprised as she was herself. He shrugged at her, shaking his head.

"There is no warmth you can offer, Iolanthe. We both know that."

Iolanthe threw him a playful look, pretending to pout for a moment. Then she sighed and commenced to admire the efforts of her fairies in the dresser's mirror.

"Ah yes …it seems you are more comfortable playing with fire, now."

"It is enough, Io." Selena told her, letting go of Liath's hand. Her voice was still pleasant, but it had an edge to it that made Spike quite uncomfortable. Things could get very ugly here, very fast.

"I have come to ask you…..in all courtesy …..To release my captain."

Iolanthe raised one of her perfect eyebrows into a flawless arch, her eye-lids fluttering in confusion.

"What makes you think he is my prisoner?"

"He has not returned …." Selena stated simply, watching her cousin's back with pursed lips.

"That is hardly to be laid at my door, cousin. Did you ever contemplate the possibility that he does not want to return to you?" Iolanthe inquired with raised brows, simultaneously slipping several gold rings onto her fingers.

"Cay would never abandon his duties without reason." Liath answered with a cold smile.

"Maybe not …maybe he had reason…."

In the mirror, Buffy could see those golden eyes fix on her. The stare was not entirely friendly, but not outright threatening either.

"The slayer …..I always thought someone like you would be …taller."

Buffy was tempted to answer that she had always thought the swan princess was supposed to be sweet and gentle, like in the children's stories, but thought it wiser to keep that to herself.

"It's not the size, but what you do with it that counts." She quipped instead. She could feel more than see Spike shifting his stance nervously. Iolanthe threw her head back and laughed, the movement made the dragonfly- fairies flutter around her head. Her laugh had the same quality as Selena´s, the same inexplicable pull and yet…..where Selena´s laughtersounded like the ringing of soft bells or a gurgling well, Iolanthe´s laughter had a sore undercurrent- like walking over broken glass. Her mouth laughed, but her eyes did not. The laughter was automatic, a mimicry like her smile.

"Well ….you might be right. So tell me, why would my cousin bring you? Has she told you all about my wicked ways?" she smiled malignantly. "Or has she conveniently forgotten to tell you more about herself ….?"

"Iolanthe…." Liath interrupted, clicking his tongue like chiding a child.

"No…" Selena said, glancing at Buffy for a moment. "Let her speak her piece. I think she will be quite disappointed to find that the slayer will hardly care …" Her eyes wandered over to Spike and back to Buffy.

Iolanthe watched it all, while the fairies fastened an exquisite gold choker around her long neck. "Oh …She is the princess, everybody knows that." She said her voice smooth as honey. "But did she tell you why she has to resort to ruling all the vermin that creeps through the darkness, hm?" Iolanthe laughed again, her eyes burning rings of gold in her mirror.

" You see, when Amoret was born, my dear uncle had long abandoned the hope of fathering a daughter and was quite at peace with having only sons. So at her birth, Oberon had nothing left to give that was light and bright and shining. She was born during a raging storm, so that birthright was hers, but what then? When her father had already bestowed the domain of water and fire and earth, of what grows and lives, of what bears fruit and life? There was nothing left for her, no place for his little princess to shine a light. So in an attempt to console his wife and himself, he gave his daughter domain where no other fairy deemed to rule; he gave her darkness threefold…..the rule of twilight, shadow and dusk. Hardly any living thing answers to her call." For the first time Iolanthe turned in her seat, to look directly at her cousin and the look was far from friendly.

"She cannot give life, cannot make things grow ….like me …." She whispered huskily, extending her hand. Buffy had seen many strange and scary things in her lifetime, but seeing the vines of ivy running along the walls stretch with a sound entirely too close to a sigh, seeing them slither across the floor to roll over Iolanthe´s naked feet like obedient, attention seeking snakes, was just too much.

Buffy swallowed, suddenly wondering if these vines could just as easily snake across the floor towards them to strangle them. This was not a demon or a vampire, those she could fight, this was mother nature herself coming for them ….and shedid not like to seeit coming.

" The second this goes awry…" Spike whispered every so quietly to her. " You make a run for it and let me worry about those …"

Buffy shot him a look, torn between being offended because he still thought to protect her, and the question how to handle this possibility.

"Why?"

"Because I can't die from strangulation, pet…unlike you."

Iolanthe´s eyes wandered back to Buffy, she still smiled, but this time it was threatening. Buffy cursed herself silently for falling for the trick. Iolanthe had achieved exactly what she had intended with the little demonstration; to rattle her and make her wonder how far her powers reached.

"She can only command the walking dead…." Iolanthe continued, her eyes raking over Spike for a minute. " The monsters that dwell in shadow and darkness."

Buffy looked at Selena´s cousin for a moment, raising her head in defiance. Her mouth was dry, but she did not intend to let this creature scare her with party tricks. She had fought the First, Buffy reminded herself. She had come back from the dead- twice, she had defeated the Master, Angelus, Spike, Drusilla and the major and every other beastie that had come her way. She would not be afraid of this one ...

" You know…" Buffy said, smiling slightly as she crossed her hands in front of her chest.

" If there is one thing that being the slayer has taught me, it's that the good guys don't always wear white…." She looked at Spike for the time of a few heartbeats, then at Selena and back to Iolanthe. " …and not all monsters like to hang out in the dark."

Selena looked at her with stormy, glittering eyes, bowing her head ever so slightly at her as if to pay respect to Buffy's answer. Iolanthe´s smile was still in place, but she looked as though she had tasted something sour.

" Well…." She laughed lightly, turning to face the mirror again. "Then you must really enjoy my cousin's company."

" Enough, Iolanthe ….we have wasted enough of my time with your games." Selena told her, impatience evident in her voice.

"I want my captain released. I will not leave without him."

"Then I fear you will not leave at all, dear cousin." Iolanthe said with a sigh. " For he has no desire to return to you. So your visit and all your regal attire are for naught."

"I will hear this from his lips, Iolanthe." Selena returned, her face still unreadable without a hint of emotion.

" He does not wish to see you. Who am I to go against his wishes?"

" Do not be ridiculous, cousin."

Buffy could see Iolanthe´s back straighten, see her eyes narrow again. There was a subtle change in the atmosphere of the room, as though the temperature was dropping and the air became heavy with the scent of hundreds of blossoms opening.

Iolanthe´s face became the same blank mask that Liath and Selena usually wore, but the emptiness of her expression was tinged with something much colder.

Buffy could see Siobhan shift nervously. Len took a tentative step forward, his hand on the hilt of a dagger hidden at his waist.

Iolanthe turned, swatting away the tinyfairies with the same movement one would use to swat a mosquito. One of them collided with the back of her hand and tumbled to the ground, where it lay in a lifeless, crumpled heap. The others dove for cover amidst the vines. Iolanthe did not seem to care.

" Ridiculous, my dear princess?" She stood, taller than Selena by several inches. She was dressed in a skirt and halter-top made from tiny nuggets of gold, connecting in the same manner as chain mail. Prepared for a night on the town, Buffy ventured to guess. The ensemble brought out the perfectly bronzed skin and willowy figure to the max.

A malicious smile curled her lips as she looked down on Selena, hands propped up on slim hips.

" It is you who is ridiculous, Amoret. What makes you think he would return to you, now that he has come to me? I was the first lady among the court, only second to your mother, before you were even born. My beauty is celebrated in legends and songs, mortals sold their souls and forfeited their lives for a kiss from my lips and a dance with me."

She threw back her wheat coloured hair, the movement caught the light and made it shimmer like gold. "Did you think he would be satisfied with staying by your side forever? That you could have him follow you around like a lapdog waiting for the moment you would finally turn to him, still after thousands of years? He got tired of waiting, Selena …tired of loyalty and silent acceptance of the crumbs you offer. He does not want you anymore, he has resigned his post. He will stay with me ….."

Buffy could feel the impact like silent thunder, hear the storm gathering above Iolanthe´s mansion even before the first roll of thunder struck with deafening power. Wind, as loud as a hurricane howled through the windows and made the lights flicker.

She could read it in Spike's face; Iolanthe had finally managed to get what she wanted ….she had made Selena very, very angry.

" Shit´s hitting the fan, love!" Spike hissed, looking around to see several of the body guards who had stood as still as statues before, reach for their swords.

Amidst the chaos Selena´s voice held the crackling of lightning.

"And every word a lie!"

Buffy turned to look at Selena in time to see the mask slip, her restraint and control for once gone. Somehow it was a far more terrifying sight than the blank, empty expression Selena´s features wore at times. Now the fairy's face was filled with emotions so strong, that the slayer thought these feelings might just spill over and out of her at any moment. Her expression was torn between hurt, fear and anger ….only that anger was a word far too mild for it. For the first time Buffy truly understood the meaning of wrath.

If Selena could, she would rip her cousin apart with her bare hands.

Her voice trembled with fury. Selena spit the words back at Iolanthe as though they had a disgusting, foul taste. It was a low, violent sound, as though she had to force each word out mouth.

Iolanthe faced her cousin, a playful, satisfied smile on her lips, like a cat that had just emptied the cream- pot. It was plain to see that it was the thought of having caused Selena significant pain that contented, even exited her.

Buffy's gaze wandered from Iolanthe back to the look of raw emotion Selena´s face ….and suddenly she understood. It had been there, right in front of her all along . How could anyone have missed it?

It had never been Liath or Len, some other guard or man at court Buffy had never heard about. She had loved Evarion for more than a thousand years, even after he must have bee long dead and gone. But it was Cay whom Selena loved now.

And he did not know …….she had never told him! And now …..Iolanthe had him, the beautiful monster with appetites which obviously made Selena´s blood run cold. To make matters worse ….Cay had delivered himself to her willingly in exchange for information about Evarion's fate. Cay had known what Iolanthe was and yet he had gone. He had done it for her …….sacrificed himself for Selena´s peace of mind.

Buffy exchanged a weary look with Spike. The vampire lifted a brow, shaking his head.

"We're out of options here, love!"


	13. A touch of frost

DISCLAIMER: All belong to Joss Whedon, I just added the fairies!

NOTES: Thanks to all who review! I am very happy you like it ….lots more to come!

Also …I'm sorry if there are some mistakes that slip by me repeatedly. I may have mentioned before …I am not a native speaker. So SORRY!

**A touch of frost**

For a moment the only thing that could be heard was the wind rattling on windows, smashing into the mansion like a giant hand - pushing and shoving. Its howl was a sound that made goose bumps rise down her arms and back. It sounded like something alive, like a giant beast circling the house.

"Wind should not sound like that, it should not be able to do these kinds of things…" Buffy thought. She took a deep breath, forcing herself to hold her ground. Still, the impulse to extend her hand and touch Spike's arm was almost irresistible. Not out of fear, but for reassurance. He had dealt with this before.

The air was heavy around them, not just from the scent of the flowers, but now also with the weight of an electric current ….lightning ready to strike at an inkling's notice. For a moment everything froze, there was no sound, no movement as though they were in the eye of the storm. And then …just like that, it stopped. The wind died down as though someone had turned an invisible switch. Iolanthe had not moved, she still stood tall and statuesque with her hands on her hips, a satisfied smile on her lips.

"If I could, I would strike you down where you stand." Selena said, her voice suddenly cool and toneless. "But I am bound by the laws of hospitality, just like you. I am a guest in your house, whether I like it or not."

Buffy released a breath she had not realised she had been holding. The muscles of her shoulders relaxed as she saw Iolanthe´s bodyguards stop in their tracks. She had been ready for combat, she noticed. Without thinking her body had already assumed a fighting stance; hands balled to fists, secure footing. She caught a glimpse of Siobhan re- sheathing black talons….they slid back into her fingers like the claws of a cat until only the tips of them remained. No black nail-polish after all, she thought, filing the fact away just in case …

Iolanthe´s smile broadened and she signalled for her bodyguards to relax with a wave of hand which made her gold rings glitter in the light.

"How nice of you to remember….princess." she made the word sound obscene.

"I will ask you once again, to release my captain."

"And I will tell you again, cousin, he does not wish to leave this place." Iolanthe answered Selena in the same cool and courteous tone the fairy princess was now choosing. Selena´s face was empty like a doll's, her stormy grey eyes seemingly the only thing alive in her features. "Very well. I bid you farewell lady Iolanthe the golden one, my aunt's daughter, sun-kissed of the high court of fairy, lady of the dawn and morning dew. Rest assured my father will hear of your conduct tonight, swan- princess." Selena said, dropping into a courtly curtsy.

Iolanthe let her hands slide from her hips, straightening her back and holding her head high.

" Farewell to you, princess Selena Amoret Indajaan, stormborn of the high court of fairy, lady of the dusk and twilight, keeper of the shadows, my uncle's only daughter. I wish you safe passage, your ladyship." In her attire, Iolanthe should have looked ridiculous, curtsying even lower than her cousin, but she managed to pull the movement off with grace and dignity.

The exchange was something ceremonial, Buffy could tell. Words that had to be said, even if they were both hell-bent on tearing each other apart. Then something happened, that made the Slayer stumble back until she almost bumped into Spike, who stood transfixed by the spectacle, as though it had turned him into stone. The glamour dropped, not just Selena had been holding back, toning her appearance down to seem more human. Seeing them both gleam in all their power, basked in iridescent, unnatural light that seemed to flow out of them and between them, was more than breathtaking. It was a blinding sight. Iolanthe´s skin glowed from within like a golden pulse, her eyes burning circles of scintillating gold, her hair bright and shimmering like sunrays on water. Then the pulsing and glowing died down, just like the wind before, and the world shifted back into focus.

Without a word or even looking at her, Liath held his hand out to Selena, turning to leave. The princess shot another withering look at her cousin, before she let herself be lead away.

"However ..Since you are here, would you like me to supply you with the things your captain came for, before he decided to stay…. indefinitely?" Iolanthe´s voice was smooth as silk. Buffy could see Siobhan's eyes widen as the banshee's gaze wandered between her mistress and her foe. For the space of a heartbeat, Selena seemed to freeze mid-step, but she caught her footing. When she answered her cousin, the fairy did not even turn around and her voice was cold. "There is nothing I would take from your hands, in this world or the other."

Iolanthe chuckled, throwing back her shining hair again. It was Liath who turned to look back at her over his shoulder and with the mocking imitation of a flirtatious smile, he blew her a kiss with his free hand. Iolanthe´s flawless features turned to stone just as the icy gust of wind reached her, covering some of the vines and her golden skin with a touch of frost.

"C'mon, pet, " Buffy could hear Spike whisper to her, touching her elbow. " Better get out of here."

Nobody spoke all through the limo-ride back to Trollock´s humble abode. Selena leaned back into the leather upholstery, arms crossed, and a drawn-back expression on her face. Liath put an arm around her, looking out the window with a stony expression.

Back at the mansion Selena stormed through the door in a whirl of taffeta skirts, carelessly pulling the diamond choker from her neck and flinging it onto the couch before she let herself fall down next to it.

"I made it worse." She hissed, raking her fingers through her multi-coloured hair, effectively ruining her coiffure.

Buffy exchanged glances with Spike, who pursed his lips in dismay. She didn't need to be a mind reader to guess that he did not like how things were going. Not that she needed to read the news that they were in trouble on his face.

"We need a plan …" Len said, is low voice almost a growl.

"Check the surroundings, make sure nobody followed us here." Liath told him and Len followed the order with a curt nod.

Siobhan lay down on the couch. Buffy could not have been more surprised if the banshee had sprouted wings. She put her head on Selena´s lap like a tired child or a cat looking for affection and the fairy began to absently stroke Siobhan's silvery hair.

"I told him not to go …and he defied me. He went behind my back even though I pleaded with him time and again. He promised to heed my order and then he stole himself away in the dead of night, like a thief." She said to no one in particular, but her voice had a strangled note to it.

Liath pursed his lips, shaking his head.

"You know him. Protecting you was more than a duty to him, more than a calling ….it had became a purpose of its own. Of course he would do this, his honour demanded it …"

"His honour….." the fairy looked up at him, spitting the words out as though she tasted something sour on her tongue. "I lost one man to honour already, I will not loose another!"

"And I will not loose a friend!" he returned and for the first time in a long while, the lord of snow sounded angry.

Selena stared at him for a moment, the turned her eyes to the slayer.

" He left me a note, did I tell you ….thousands of life-times of service and confidence…and all leaves me with is a letter, like he needed to explain his actions, like I would not guess…"

She said, laughing bitterly.

" What did it say?" Buffy asked, uttering the words before she could stop herself. It was none of her business really, but ….still she felt like she needed to know.

"_Tell me not, sweet, I am unkind_

_That from the nunnery of thy chaste breast and quiet mind,_

_To war and arms I fly._

_True; a new mistress now I chase:_

_The first foe in the field._

_And with a stronger faith embrace_

_A sword, a horse, a shield._

_Yet, this inconsistency is such_

_As thou too shalt adore; _

_I could not love thee, dear, so much, _

_Loved I not honour more…_"

"To Lucasta …on going to the wars, by Richard Lovelace" Spike whispered. Buffy turned to look at him. She should have known he knew all about poetry.

"Yes." Selena returned tonelessly.

Spike nodded, gnawing on his lip. He looked as though he was pondering something, but his eyes were all for the fairy.

"Good one too, but not what I would have chosen for a last good- bye." It did not sound disrespectful in the least and yet, for a moment Buffy could not help but worry about the reaction his words might provoke in Selena. She had revealed a very personal detail to them, something she surely had to feel very sore about. But Selena just looked up, searching the vampire's face as though she suddenly saw something that had not been there before.

"What would you have chosen?" she asked, her voice so soft, so fragile it was barely audible….the sound of a soft breeze rustling through leaves nearly unheard. Spike pursed his lips, trying hard to ignore the Slayer's inquisitive gaze, returning Selena´s searching look.

"_Thou art my life, my love, my heart, the very eyes of me_

_And hast command of every part_

_To live and die for thee_."

"To Anthea…" Liath pitched in from where he was leaning against the doorframe. His smooth voice cut through the silence, releasing the tension. " …who may command him anything." The lord of snow threw Buffy a significant look with a challenging smile. For a moment Buffy thought her heart was beating so hard against her ribs that everybody would hear it and it was hard to swallow.

"Richard Herrick." Selena said, nodding. "Beautiful…."

" Right …" Spike ground out, looking at his boots. "Excuse me, need some air." He said sombrely, leaving the room. He did not even look at Buffy as he passed her by.

Selena followed it all with narrowed, storm filled eyes.

Buffy watched his retreating back, then turned back to look at the fairies with a look that was supposed to cover her confusion and growing anger.

" Go…" Selena said simply, " You know you should …go to him." She rose from the couch with the same liquid grace that seemed to be inherent to everything she did. " I will change into something more fitting a rescue ….and then we will make plans. But you should stop wasting time."

It took Buffy a while to find him, and when she did he was standing in a remote corner of the garden. His back was turned to her as he was looking up at the moon.

"That was for me…wasn't it?" Buffy asked, trying to control her voice, trying so hard to make it sound even. She wasn't succeeding, even she could hear it. She could hear her voice shaking. "That was for my benefit? Did you really think a few words scrawled on a piece of paper would make up for ….you leaving?"

"Thought about it." Spike answered quietly, looking at her over his shoulder. She was so beautiful, just standing there in a pool of moonlight. He remembered all too vividly the first time he had laid eyes on her that one night at the Bronze. He had come to hunt her, to gloat and goad; a predator stalking his prey. He had killed slayers and it had made his blood sing, their taste, the rush of power. He had thought he had the answers to everything this tiny slip of a blonde could throw at him. He had not been ready for her. He had been a fool.

It felt like a life-time ago, but Spike knew that it would be something he'd never forget….like it was yesterday. Her dancing, laughing ….in the spotlight, so vibrant, so strong, so …

She had that certain something, a fragile quality that he could not put into words and yet, she had so much strength in her. Bit by bit, fight by fight, whether it had been a battle of limbs, wits or words - she had intoxicated him with her determination until he had craved her presence, the challenge she presented. Had he ever managed to defeat her, he would have mourned her loss. He had never had an enemy quite like her before …or an ally.

And now, this sharp-tongued, lethal, unyielding foe- the slayer- had become the only thing that mattered….the only thing he wanted. But most, he wanted her to be happy ….no matter what …even if her happiness was without him. She deserved nothing less.

Buffy shook her head, the movement made her pony-tail swing.

"You cannot leave!" she said, looking him as though the sheer power of her will could make him turn towards her. And he did.

"Right, cause you're not ready for me not to be there, I remember that conversation, pet."

He tried to make it sound casual, but there was a note of defeat in his voice. He gave a dry chuckle and for a moment it sounded as though he was mocking himself.

Oh god, no….no, no, no, no, no, she thought. Not now, not yet …she was not ready …she was not ready yet. She bit her lip, casting her eyes downward. She very much felt like yelling at him.

After all he had done, after all that had happened…..

He was the only reason she had come on this rescue trip, not to loose him, only to realize right then and there that it might not be Selena who would keep her from ever seeing Spike again, but she herself would accomplish that task….It might be her fault after all.

"I don't think I'll ever be ready for you not to be here…" Buffy whispered.


	14. Friends and Enemies

DISCLAIMER: Buffy belongs to Joss, I grovel at his feet! The fairies are mine.

The Song was written by the talented Delta Goodrem.

NOTES: Thanks for your patience and the kind reviews!

FRIENDS AND ENEMIES

"What's that, pet?" he looked back at her again, over his shoulder. He hadn't really listened, lost in his own thoughts. Looking at her standing there, Spike realized how forlorn she suddenly looked, how fragile and dainty. He had not meant to make her feel bad. They were in over their heads anyway with those fairies. No use dragging all their issues out into the light right now.

_It's the last night on earth_

_Before the great divide_

_My hands are shaking,_

_Time was never on our side_

_There's no such thing as a beautiful good-bye_

_On an ordinary day I pray for you a thousand times_

Buffy looked at her feet for a moment, closing her eyes to draw a deep, shuddering breath. This was it, she knew it. This was the moment she had tried to evade, tried to postpone for so long, until the silence and the tension between them had made things awkward. She really had no right to criticise him for thinking of leaving ….she had not been of any help. She had not known what to do ….the words had slid out; right there in the cave when she thought she had lost him. He had not believed her, but that had made matters worse not better. She had thought she had lost him and when he had crawled from the rubble hours later, when it was all over……when he had still been there, Buffy had not been able to stop crying. Still the words had been uttered and he had not believed and they had been doing a dance around it all that would have to stop, now, tonight …..Or she might really loose him. And she couldn't ….she just couldn't ….but she was so afraid, still…..so afraid it might all turn to ash just as so many times before. His feelings for her had not changed, she knew that ….

"How can the one thing you hate so much, that you spend all your life fighting it with every breath, the one thing you spent all your time trying destroy, become the only thing that matters?" she whispered, swallowing hard past the rapidly beating pulse in the throat. "How can that one thing become the only thing you need, the only thing you want against reason and sanity? How could you have become the one thing I cannot do without?"

_It's never enough_

_No matter how many times I try to tell you_

_This is love_

_If tomorrow never comes_

_I want you to know right now_

_That I, I'm gonna love you until the day I die_

Spike turned to stare at her in surprise. Then he scoffed, shaking his head, burying his hands inside his coat. "Beats me, love. And I've been grappling with that concept a whole lot longer than you!"

She looked up, taking a cautious step towards him, then another before she basically flung herself at him. Her small hands fisted into his duster, pulling him closer as she hid her face against his chest.

"You can never leave me." She whispered. "Not anymore, you can't …I can't do it without you." She whispered harshly as his arms came around her, pulling her even closer into a crushing embrace. Spike drew an unneeded breath, leaning down to lean his forehead onto the top of her head. Her hair smelled of vanilla and apricots, just like he remembered.

"Needn't worry about that anymore, slayer. You'll never get rid of me now." He chuckled, feeling her warmth seeping into his cold skin.

_And if tomorrow falls asleep_

_Can you hold me fast?_

_I'm gonna love you like it's the last night on earth_

Buffy looked up into his blue, blue eyes that glinted with that special light in the dark. She shook her head. "I will not be Selena", she said quietly. "I will not wake up one day and realize that I have lost it all because I waited too long, because I was afraid and because I could not forget. That was what she meant, the first slayer…..when I saw her on my quest….Love, give, forgive. I had to move on. I will not be afraid anymore ….I meant what I said; I love you. I can say that now, finally I can say that and not have it scare me to death."

There was emotion in his face that Buffy was sure she had never seen before as they just looked at each other. She was waiting for one of his quick remarks, but none came. He just looked at her, lifting a hand to push a few wayward strands of hair from her face.

"God, you are so beautiful…"

He had been waiting long, so long for her to say these kinds of things to him that now, he was speechless. So she just leaned in, pulling him towards her to kiss him; a slow, deep, lingering kiss that held a promise of things to come.

_Your fingers on my skin_

_Only you can hear my fear_

_Only can help me heal_

_I see forever with you here_

_It's never enough_

_No matter how many miles stand between us_

_This is love_

She could feel his arms around her, his hands climbing upwards across her back, her shoulders. She breathed in deep, revelling in that unique mixture of leather, smoke and mystery cologne that was Spike. She really did love him and it did not matter what had been, that when they had sat out on this journey together they had stood on different sides, hell bent on killing each other ….it simply did not matter anymore how they had come to be where they stood now. All that mattered was that they were there …now.

_It's never enough_

_It's never enough_

_I'm gonna love you until the day I die_

_I'm gonna love you like it's the last night on earth_

"Excuse me …" the velvety voice of the banshee cut through the night air. They broke their kiss, turning around to find her standing a few feet away basked in pale moonlight that reflected in her dark eyes. Siobhan arched an eyebrow, looking at them with an almost amused expression. "Your presence is called for …. Inside"

They were arguing as Buffy and Spike re-entered the spacious living-room. Selena had changed into black clothing that clung to her lithe body like a second skin, pants and shirt made from a soft material unlike any Buffy had ever seen before. For a moment the slayer wondered where the fairy acquired her clothing. She was walking back and forth between the armchairs like a trapped animal.

"The whole perimeter, the house, the park …everything is heavily warded. The moment we set foot on her grounds, she'll know …" Len said.

"It is not her magic!" Selena stated angrily, pursing her lips. "Io never had the gift or the stomach for powers like that. Whatever warded her place does not sleep or dream at the court of fairy….it is not our magic. She had somebody else do it, paid someone much more powerful to ward her home."

Liath still leaned against the wall, shrugging his shoulders. "It matters not who did it; we cannot attempt to rescueCay like that. We need to find another way."

"I looked for the smallest breach, there is none, milord." Len replied.

"We need to get her out of the house. It will be easier …she takes part of her guard with her where ever she goes. She would never go anywhere alone."

Buffy arched an eyebrow, feeling the light squeeze from Spike's hand, his fingers still intertwined with hers. "Doesn't that still leave us short one entryway?" she asked into the silence.

The fairies looked at her in surprise, and then Liath's lips curved into a devious smile.

"Maybe ….maybe not. There might one thing she has overlooked just like wehave ..until now.

"Meaning?" Spike asked, cocking his head sideways.

"The golden child is after all a very, very vain woman…"

The slayer looked at the white haired man who stood against the wall, marveling again at how ageless he appeared. She could feel her forehead crease up as she tried to discern the meaning of his words. He could see what he meant, Iolanthe sure as hell did like to look at herself...with all those mirrors in very room they had crossed. Buffy´s eyes widened in understanding. But he could not be serious. "Whoa …can you guys really walk through mirrors?"

Selena threw her cousin a glance, shaking her head in exhaustion. "No…at least most of us cannot. And Io has a knack of making enemies. She would ward off the mirrors first for fear of what might creep through to get her while she is admiring herself."

"Ahh, but there are powers even the most powerful magic could not deny passage if they meant to pass through…" Liath responded. They exchanged looks again while Siobhan curled up on the couch again like a tired kitten, watching them all with those big black eyes. For the first time since Buffy had met the fairy, Selena looked unsure of what to do.

"What is going on again?" she finally demanded to know, shaking her head in annoyance. "I'm really getting tired of listening to you two talking in riddles and insinuations, keeping us in the dark for most of the time. You wanted my help. Well, here I am helping you, but I can't do it …we can't do it if you don't share your information with us."

Selena looked at the slayer for a moment, her multicoloured hair catching the light where it fell over her shoulders.

"My cousin is right." She answered after a while, her voice soft and sweet like honey. "Even if Iolanthe has warded her mirrors with magic to close them off so they cannot be used as window or door to her realm, there are those who could open them anyway, for their power over the mirrors supersedes all magic Iolanthe could buy or borrow."

"That would mean dragging another party into this." Spike added.

"Why don't I think that is a good idea?" Buffy asked.

"Because you are a very smart young woman." Selena said.

"There is only one I can think of who could open the mirror for us ….and lucky as we are, that person might be the one being that hates Iolanthe with even more ardour than you right now, my fair cousin." Liath turned his head to look at her, his eyes more serious than they had ever been. His voice dropped to a new low, nothing morethan a whisper slithering through the room like the first gust of snowy wind. "The white lady Cathane, the unseeing eye, consort of Thean, who walks amongst the mists, ruler of the netherworld."

"Cathane, the betrayed…." Selena whispered with a mixture of awe and regret in her voice,"Io´s sister…."

Buffy's gaze wandered between the lord of snow and Selena. She still felt the reassuring pressure of Spike's hand around hers, his thumb moving over the back of her hand in comforting touches. A look at him told her, that most of the time he wasn't even aware of doing it and the thought almost made her smile, warmed her heart. But there were other things she had to deal with now ….business to finish, so they could go home.

"Another fairy?" she asked suspiciously. The slayer had to admit, she did not like the thought. They were already knee-deep in fairy- politics, and that was a lot deeper than Buffy felt comfortable with. "Why would she help us break into her sister's house…?"

Selena turned her head to look fully at Buffy, her lips curved into that careful half bitter, half sad smile. "Some might say that what I stand to loose to Io is nothing compared what Cathane lost because of her sister so many years ago. She was not always the white lady, the mists´s companion. When she began her existence she was Fionula Cathane Jenaái, the shining one, lady of spring and flowers. Her beauty and grace were said to rival her elder sister's."

Buffy gave a snort, shaking her head. Even she could see where this was going. "Let me guess, your cousin Iolanthe does not take kindly to competition….especially if it derives from inside the family."

Selena gave Buffy an appraising nod. "You would have guessed right. But there was nothing she could do, for Cathane´s character held neither her sister's vanity nor her malice. She was the most sweet-tempered, gentle soul."

"And it has made her the perfect victim to her sister's malevolence." Liath said his voice not entirely friendly.

"How?" Spike asked with narrowed eyes.

"Shall we say ….Cathane planted the seed of her affection into ...not so safe ground." He closed his eyes, leaning his head back as though he was trying to remember something, his voice evening out, flowing in a rhythm that was faintly reminiscent of a bard telling an ancient tale. "On a bright, sunlit day the grey lord saw her dancing in the fields; a child of light and spring and his heart longed for her laughter and her warmth, and her beauty made him weep to be loved so. Where she would set her feet flowers would bloom, but where he dwelled nothing could grow. And so on this day the flower child Cathane, mistress of spring, laid eyes upon the pale lord who walked among the mists, and her eyes found there was nothing to fear, for she saw him proud and strong and valiant. And though she was all that he could never be, Cathane opened her heart and her arms to him."

"Thean, the grey lord, the pale lord as we call him …is neither alive nor dead, in a way he is more kin to your vampire, than to us ….never the less he is a part of the fairy. He is allowed into the summer lands because he rules those who belong neither to heaven nor hell, he rules the netherworld, he leads what is known in your world as the wild hunt. The only way to reach the netherworld if you are not one of the lost is through a broken mirror. Thean gave Cathane a special mirror as a gateway to his realm. Cathane would come and visit him there. For fear of losing her Thean gave his love a roll of red string that would always lead her back home through the mirror, for he did not want her to get lost in the mists, in the corridor between the summer lands and the netherworld." Selena explained with a far away look in her eyes, as though she was reliving history. "Io found the mirror her sister used as a gate and destroyed it, scattering the glass all over the world and cutting the string, trapping her sister in the corridor between the worlds, neither here nor there …to wander in eternal darkness, unable to find her way home."

Buffy's eyes went wide, staring at Selena. "What a bitch!"

Selena chuckled at her words, giving Buffy a very amused smile to show how much she enjoyed her reaction. Then she nodded. "Indeed. But Iolanthe had neither foreseen Thean's persistence nor his devotion to Cathane. More than a hundred years he searched without rest until he hadgathered all the scattered pieces of Cathane´s mirror and put it back together, so he could free her from the dark."

"But by then … Cathane had gone blind, her eyes had lost their light in the darkness" Liath added, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "She had lost her sight, her skin had paled and her golden hair had gone white from sorrow, she had been cast out of the summer lands too long so that the land and all that grew no longer answered to her call. She had lost all her powers, so she made her home in Thean´s realm. He made her his consort to rule by his side and he gave her dominion over what once been her prison. Till this day the white lady rules the ghost roads that lead from one mirror to the other and no one can deny her passage."

"She never sat foot into the summer lands again for pain over what she had lost." Selena said, her voice breathy, filling with sadness. "That is why they call her Cathane, the betrayed."

"If I were here, I'd jump at the opportunity to repay that dept to her sister!"

"Yes ...but whether to ask her is the question …" Selena mused. "We would have to contact the pale lord first and..."

"Words of your dealings might travel back to your father." Liath said, pursing his lips.

Selena nodded, taking a deep breath. "Thean is …ruler of the netherworld he might be, but he is also still the king´s justice. My father´s executionier..."


End file.
